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Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has been floated in trade rumors prior to Thursday’s deadline, but his head coach made it clear that he won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
Following Monday’s 125-113 win over the New Orleans Pelicans in which Porter dropped a season-high 36 points, head coach Michael Malone had a definitive answer when asked about the trade rumors involving the swingman.
“No because we’re not trading Michael Porter,” Malone said, per ESPN. “So I’m not touching base with anybody on that. … And if there’s something coming, obviously [Nuggets GM Calvin Booth] will talk with me and I’m sure we’ll communicate with whatever players. But Michael is a really important piece, he helped us win a championship.”
While Porter is in the midst of the best season of his seven-year career, he’s still considered a prime trade candidate because he’s the only player on the Nuggets roster who has a salary above $9 million and is also eligible to be traded before the deadline. He signed a five-year max extension in 2022 and has two years and nearly $80 million left on the deal.
However, Porter appears to have overcome the injury woes that plagued him early in his career. After playing in 81 games last season, he’s appeared in all 50 games this year and is averaging 18.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 40.8 percent from three-point range.
“As long as I’m here, I’m going to be here and I’m going to be happy and I’m going to play hard and try to be available and try to help win games,” Porter said after Monday’s win. “And then if the day came where they wanted to trade me and they wanted to go a different direction, then I’ll be excited for the new opportunity. But … it’s not something I think about at all.”
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