The Michael Porter Jr. Trade Is GENIUS…

The Michael Porter Jr. Trade Is GENIUS…

just as NBA free agency begins we get a pretty out of nowhere but really interesting trade between the Nets and Nuggets michael Porter Jr is on the move to Brooklyn along with a 2032 first round pick in exchange for Cam Johnson and this deal has massive implications for both teams first let’s talk about what’s happening here for Denver we knew coming into the offseason that it was possible they were going to be moving on from one of their bigger contracts on the roster they’re one of the few teams in the league really the only team in the league that has four giant contracts set up the way that they do jamal Murray Michael Porter Jr Aaron Gordon of course Nicole Joic all signed for the next couple of seasons and all on pretty big contracts most teams around the league now as we’ve gotten into this new CBA have started to go more towards a one or two max player star model whereas the Nuggets are still kind of existing in the old CBA and it was clear that they were going to need to move some pieces around if they really wanted to try and build a top tier contending roster around Nicole Joic and clearly despite some anticipation that maybe Jamal Murray would be the guy it certainly wasn’t going to be Aaron Gordon cuz he was their second best player in the playoffs it becomes Michael Porter Jr a productive player during his time in Denver that ultimately wasn’t worth the contract they signed him to and dealt with injury issues not only in the postseason last year but really throughout his time in Denver so he ends up getting moved to Brooklyn along with the first round pick in exchange for Cam Johnson and this helps the Nuggets in a couple of different ways one there’s a massive difference between the salaries of these two players cam Johnson makes basically half of what Michael Porter Jr is owed for this upcoming season and the following so that allows the Nuggets to have a little bit more flexibility with their payroll and as a result add guys like Bruce Brown the return of Bruce Brown to Denver that would have been much more difficult for them to be able to make work with Porter Jr still on the roster and that flexibility also extends into next off seasonason as well so depending on what happens this year if they want to make another move they would be able to do that or at least much more able than they would with Porter Jr and Cam Johnson is just a more reliable player from an injury standpoint from a shooting standpoint does a little bit more for you off the dribble and overall I think is going to be a really really good fit in Denver they’ve needed a little bit more not that Cam Johnson is this great perimeter playmaker but just a little bit more attacking off of closeouts and that’s just a part of Michael Porter Junior’s game that got better this year but he never fully developed the way that the Nuggets needed him to and Johnson being on the same contract timeline but cheaper than Michael Porter Jr really helps them as well because it lets them evaluate what’s happening here over the next couple of seasons without committing super long-term to someone like Cam Johnson if they like him if he’s good they can recommmit to him in the summer of 2027 but it keeps them on the same timeline as pretty much all the other guys they have on the roster obviously it stings to give up an unprotected first round pick all the way in 2032 that’s a long way away for the Nuggets but this is Joic’s prime they’ve got a couple more years left of really trying to compete at the top of the Western Conference and Cam Johnson certainly helps them do that he’s an outstanding fit for a team that needs shooting and in any scenario which you’re getting rid of Michael Porter Jr is already one of the better shooters on the team you need to bring in someone else that can also space and I really like the Cam Johnson fit for Denver even though that first round pick does sting i’m going to give them a B+ or an A grade for this because I really like the fit and I can totally understand what they’re doing from a salary cap flexibility standpoint and this is frankly a deal that just wouldn’t have happened under the old CBA but became a necessity with the way the Nuggets payroll structure was set up and coming into the offseason it was just really important for Denver to find ways to upgrade the roster while also getting more payroll flexibility and this was really the only way to make that happen on the other hand for the Nets I’m a Nets fan but unbiasedly I love the deal for them they have been trying to move Cam Johnson for the last like 18 months for multiple first round picks and teams around the league offered them a first round pick and maybe some even offered them two but not high enough picks for what the Nets would actually want in exchange for Cam Johnson and so what they did instead was rather than getting multiple picks they took a swing a high upside swing on a pick so far out in advance that it could be really really good nicole Joic is going to be 36 37 years old by the time we get to 2032 assuming he’s still even playing assuming he’s still even on the Nuggets and the future for Denver once you get to that point is completely unknown and so it’s nice that the Nets have all of these first round picks from all of these other teams but a lot of them could easily be later on in the first round whereas this Nuggets pick could end up being extremely valuable and is arguably the most valuable first round pick that the Nets currently have access to depending on what you think about the future of a team like the New York Knicks but rather than going for quantity of picks in exchange for Cam Johnson they went with quality and an upside swing and I like Michael Porter Jr for them they have a bunch of cap space they’re going to be able to fit him in just fine they’re not worried about their payroll and whether he plays or doesn’t play whatever the case may be I still think it’s an asset for them maybe at the deadline if he has a really good start to the year you can flip him to someone else for a couple of second round picks a team that maybe wants to dump some other contracts on you there’s still some movement here with the Nets obviously it’s going to be a little bit weird because clearly they don’t want to be good next year they don’t want to win games and he can actually help you do that because he’s a good player but I could see a scenario in which they are kind of decent at the deadline move him for something and then lose a bunch of games after the deadline and it’s not just a complete zero for them even though he does make a bunch of money and then you go into the following season he has a non-g guaranteed year on his contract which means they could buy him out and basically get him off the books if they really wanted that flexibility and then he becomes a free agent in 2027 which is why this deal really works super well for both sides these guys being on the exact same contract timeline makes it work for both teams where the Nuggets don’t have to commit super long-term gives them that flexibility whereas the Nets whatever their plans are in the summer of 2026 or 2027 still exist with Michael Porter Jr on the roster and as I said they could also flip him prior to that in exchange for more assets i love the deal for the Nets i still think that there was a possibility out there maybe they could have gotten two second round picks from a team in exchange for Cam Johnson i prefer this deal over anything I’d seen rumored previously for Cam Johnson and I love the deal for Brooklyn i think it’s an Agrade for them as well really nice win-win move which we don’t really see all that often now with this new CBA and anytime the Nets are making a trade it’s also worth pointing out and updating the new Kevin Durant trade return look at all of these picks that the Nets have gotten in exchange for Kevin Durant and by the way Michael Porter Jr is still in there as well they could maybe flip him later on for first round picks as well the Nets obviously people made fun of them for what they did on draft night keeping all five of their first round picks and that’s going to be a question mark for them moving forward what exactly did they do with all these picks but in terms of rebuilding and setting yourself up for the future they’ve done a really really good job and is the only team with cap space this off seasonason they’re the only team in position to actually make these kinds of moves for Denver to shed $20 million essentially in salary it per season in just one move and that’s why the Nets are the destination for these teams because they’re the only team that can actually make these kinds of moves happen and I wouldn’t be surprised if going forward we see a few more moves like this again because of this new CBA because of the second apron teams are really afraid of spending they’re afraid of having high payrolls the Nuggets are a perfect example of that and the Nets are going to continue to be one of these teams to say “Hey if you want to dump your contract here they got a first round pick for facilitating the Chris Porzingis trade by taking on Terrence Man they get a first round pick here for taking on Michael Porter Jr they’re uniquely positioned this offseason to capitalize on teams being afraid of spending and them having the ability to take on these contracts and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see more of that as they continue to try and build but at the end of the day I love the deal for both teams i’m excited to see what Cam Johnson looks like now with the Nuggets now that they added Bruce Brown as well they really have so much more flexibility to build out their roster and this is a pretty essential move for them and as I said Brooklyn was really the only trade partner they could go to in this scenario which is why the price was so high that 2032 first round pick uh going to Brooklyn which could end up being really good it could just be the 15th pick in the draft but if I’m the Nets I’m totally okay taking that risk and taking that upside swing on a pick that could be really really good and at the end of the day I I just love these kinds of deals where no matter how it works out from here no matter what the Nets pick ends up being from the Nuggets how Michael Porter Jr plays in Brooklyn how Cam Johnson plays in Brooklyn you can immediately see why each team did this and it makes sense for both teams whether it works out that remains to be seen but the process of this and the why of this trade is immediately clear and evident and those are the kinds of trades that are super fun for me

To open 2025 NBA free agency, we have a trade! The Denver Nuggets have traded Michael Porter Jr. and a 2032 1st first round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cam Johnson. A Michael Porter Jr. trade this offseason was a bit of a surprise, but it is a really meaningful trade for both sides.

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