Porter Jr. brings the energy and much more for Denver
It didn't take long for Michael Porter Jr. to make his presence felt Monday.
On Denver' s first possession —11 seconds into a 121-113 overtime win against the Thunder — Porter cut to the rim and easily scored with a right-handed layup. The effortless basket was the epitome of his nearly perfect afternoon inside the NBA bubble.
Porter, the injuryplagued rookie selected 14th overall by the Nuggets in the 2018 NBA Draft, finished with a career-high 37 points, delivering the Thunder its first loss — in a combined five games and scrimmages — in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
“Porter I think made some shots, he made some tough ones ,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. “but I also thought we gave him too many easy shots and the game was a little bit easier for him early and then he certainly found a rhythm and his confidence.”
Porter's career day was sparked by an impressive first- half performance where he led all scorers with 20 points and was one rebound shy of a doubledouble. He then followed his explosive first half with 17 more points that were all crucial down the stretch for the Nuggets.
Overall, he went 12-of16 from the field, 4-of-6 on 3-pointers, grabbed 12 rebounds and one assist in 44 minutes of play in arguably the best game of his career.
“Honestly it was just my teammates,” Porter Jr. said postgame. “If you watch the first half, all of my buckets were coming off easy dump-offs around the rim that got me going. And then from there, I started hitting some shots, feeling good. But really it was just my teammates finding me.”
Even though Porter Jr. only averages 7.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, Donovan wasn't surprised by the 22-year-olds performance, citing Porter's high potential and being drafted by such a good team.
“He's very- very talented,” Donovan said. “The unfortunate part for him is I think he's dealt with a lot of injuries throughout his career. ... But he's got great potential, he's got great upside, he's got great ability.”
Porter, an AAU teammate of former OU star Trae Young, first injured his back in high school. That led to two subsequent surgeries that forced him to miss almost his entire college career at Missouri and delayed the start of his NBA career. He's since battled his way back and into the Nuggets rotation.
With the absence of Denver starters Gary Harris (muscle strain), Will Barton III (knee) and Jamal Murray (hamstring) in the NBA's bubble, Porter Jr. earned a spot in the starting lineup.
He started in the Nuggets '125-105 loss to the Miami Heat on Saturday. After scoring 11 points, Porter Jr. said he wanted to have a different approach to the matchup against the Thunder.
“I just wanted to bring energy, not worry about scoring or anything ,” Porter Jr. said .“I just wanted to empty it all out and get back on defense every time, spread the floor, get to the corner and I knew from there it would just take care of itself.”