Why are the Nuggets treating Michael Porter Jr. like a garbage-time player now?
Kiz: OK, now I’m ticked. And confused. The Nuggets insist Michael Porter Jr. is a rising star. But coach Michael Malone can’t find consistent minutes in the playing rotation for him? During his final 10 games of January, when Denver finally gave Porter a fair chance to play, the young forward responded with 14.7 points and 9.0 rebounds in a tick under 25 minutes per game. And by the way, the Nuggets won eight of those 10 games. But Porter turned an ankle, and now Malone hands Porter the end seat on the bench formerly reserved for Juancho Hernangomez? What the …
Singer: What I’m going to say will be unpopular, and maybe even maddening to some fans. But I think I can rationalize what’s going on. Porter has played a grand total of 18 minutes over the last two games. He’s playing his first NBA minutes in three weeks after coming back from that ankle injury. He’s also trying to regain a foothold in Denver’s reserve unit, which is clearly in the experimental phase now that the Nuggets are fully healthy. When he doesn’t have the ball in his hands, it looks like he’s searching for his place in the offense. When he does, he’s prone to forcing the issue. All of that being said, Malone hasn’t given him a ton of runway these past two games — though I’d add that three fouls in seven minutes Sunday didn’t aid his cause. There are still 25 games left for him carve a role.
Kiz: In addition to lavishing $90 million on veteran Paul Millsap, Nuggets management never utters a discouraging word about the veteran forward’s three seasons of very average performance. On the other hand, Malone demonstrates very little patience for the mistakes of youth committed by Porter. While Millsap is clearly a superior defender, this much is also true. In his first full season as a pro, Porter has posted a 19.36 player efficiency rating. Millsap’s PER is 18.48. If Denver’s pursuit of a championship is a long game, please explain to me why there isn’t a consistent commitment to the development of Porter.
Singer: With all due respect to Kickin’ It headquarters, I think that’s a reach. This is similar to what happened in November with Porter, when his minutes fluctuated and Malone was working to ease him in. Malone is trying to establish a reliable second unit, not exhaust his starters and find out which players he can trust come this postseason. I bet you by next Sunday against Toronto that Porter is playing 20 minutes a night again. As for their loyalty to Millsap (who, by the way, had a season-high 25 points Sunday night on two missed shots), I’ll offer this: What’s the common denominator tying the veteran power forward, Gary Harris and Torrey Craig? It’s defense. Whether you agree with it or not, it’s pretty much a Malone mandate.
Kiz: Wasn’t the trade of Hernangomez and Malik Beasley supposed to simplify and clean up this team’s substitution patterns? Didn’t I recently hear Malone say MPJ was going to get the chance to play in the postseason? OK, he’s supposed to be the X-factor for Denver in a playoff series against the Lakers or Clippers, but Malone doesn’t think Porter should work on his craft during regular-season games against the Thunder or Timberwolves? Well, if that sounds like a mixed message to me, I can only imagine what Porter must think. Give the kid a shot rather than let him rot on the bench.
Singer: Porter’s minutes against OKC (eight in total) had nothing to do with a minutes restriction. It had to do with the fact that his first shot clanked the side of the backboard, and the reserve unit as a whole got blistered on defense. Last night, after his only second-half minutes came in garbage time, Malone conceded he has “got to find a way to get Michael Porter going.” That doesn’t sound like he’ll be glued to the bench much longer.