Nuggets' Michael Porter Jr. is not making himself untradeable

Porter had a huge turnover late in the Nuggets' 105-102 loss, then laid on the court, letting Norman Powell hit a go-ahead three-pointer that provided the margin of victory in Game 2. He did score 15 points and collect 15 rebounds, but that was a killer turnover. 

Last week, after Marc Stein reported that the Nuggets were reluctant to trade Porter due to him playing basketball at the University of Missouri, where Kroenke also played. Kroenke denied the report, but the Nuggets have not been getting the kind of production you'd expect from a player earning $35.9M in the third year of a maximum rookie extension.

Porter told reporters Monday night he injured his shoulder diving for a loose ball, and that he was struggling to adjust to a new foot brace. He also appears to be struggling with being guarded by Kawhi Leonard, one of the NBA's best defenders.

But Porter's playoff struggles didn't start in this series. Before Monday's game, he'd scored 28 points in his previous five playoff games. That's 5.6 points per game, while shooting 5-for-23 from three-point range. Not only is Porter not scoring, he didn't appear to have his heart fully in the game.

In Game 1, Nuggets interim head coach David Adelman sat Porter for half of the team's overtime loss, going with Russell Westbrook instead. After the game, Nikola Jokic was very blunt about Porter's apparent lack of engagement, telling reporters, "If you're not going to be engaged right now, I think you're not supposed to play this sport."

The Nuggets have always been run frugally, with the team letting Kentavious Caldwell-Pope leave in free agency last summer rather than pay more in luxury tax. If Porter's production in big games continues to lag far behind his whopping salary, he may not be on the Nuggets much longer, no matter where he went to college.