Michael Porter Jr. Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jamal Murray’s Return This Season “50-50” Proposition

March 12th, 2022 at 9:32am CST by Dana Gauruder

Nuggets fans have been hoping that Jamal Murray will make a strong comeback this season and lift the team to another deep postseason run.

However, it’s not even certain Murray will play in 2021/22, Mike Singer of the Denver Post reports. Citing two league sources, Singer writes that it’s a 50-50 proposition Murray will take the court this season and that the decision might ultimately be made by the point guard himself.

Murray tore the ACL in his left knee last April and he’s continued to get treatment, test his knee and see how it reacts. The next steps include playing 3-on-3 and 4-on-4, improving his conditioning and getting his heart rate up.

Murray and Michael Porter Jr., who is recovering from another back surgery, could be assigned as soon as this coming week to Denver’s G League affiliate in Grand Rapids, Mich. Porter has been through lengthy rehabs before but this is new territory for Murray and the Nuggets are not sure if he’s mentally ready to play at this juncture, Singer adds.

Northwest Notes: Murray, Porter Jr., House, McLaughlin, Wolves

March 5th, 2022 at 4:04pm CST by JD Shaw

The Nuggets scrapped their plan to send Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. to the team’s G League affiliate in Grand Rapids on Friday, Mike Singer of the Denver Post writes. Murray is rehabbing from a torn ACL, while Porter is recovering from lumbar spine surgery.

The pair was set to travel to Grand Rapids, but logistical concerns and the team only being able to practice once nixed the idea — it’s about a two-and-a-half hour flight from Denver to Grand Rapids. It remains possible that Murray and Porter could practice or scrimmage with the Gold down the road, Singer notes.

Denver currently ranks sixth in the West with a 37-26 record. Porter is eyeing a return sometime this month, as we previously relayed, while the Nuggets still hope Murray can return before the playoffs.

Here are some other notes from the Northwest:

Rockets coach Stephen Silas expressed support for Jazz forward Danuel House, who played for Houston from 2018-21, Eric Walden of the Salt Lake City Tribune tweets. House signed three 10-day contracts with Utah before earning a standard deal. “I’m happy for him and proud of him because he’s a contributor for a winning team,” Silas said. “I love him. It wasn’t anything he did wrong (here). I’m happy he landed on his feet.”
The Timberwolves‘ coaching staff hesitated to get Jordan McLaughlin into the team’s flow earlier this season, Chris Hine of the Star Tribune writes. McLaughlin has since taken on a bigger role for Minnesota, playing double-digit minutes in his last 16 games. “He kind of fell through the cracks in our player development structure a little bit,” head coach Chris Finch admitted. “So that was on us for the beginning of the season.”
Speaking of the Timberwolves, the team’s bench unit has benefited from its off-court chemistry, Hine writes in a separate story for the Star Tribune. Minnesota finished with 74 bench points a 138-101 victory over the Thunder on Saturday, headlined by strong performances from Malik Beasley, Taurean Prince and Naz Reid.

Northwest Notes: Nurkic, Wright, MPJ, Arthur

March 1st, 2022 at 6:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic, an unrestricted free agent this summer, will be sitting for at least four weeks with a plantar fasciitis injury. John Hollinger of The Athletic reads the tea leaves and examines Nurkic’s potential future in Portland, as well as explaining why the club will likely operate over the cap during the 2022 offseason.

Nurkic is in the final season of a four-year, $48MM deal with the Trail Blazers and has averaged 17.4 PPG, 12.6 RPG and 3.4 APG since the start of 2022. Though the 27-year-old is no longer the shot blocker he was before suffering a compound fracture of his left leg near the end of the 2018/19 NBA season, Hollinger notes that the rest of his game seems more or less to have returned. The 6’11” big man is averaging 15.0 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 2.8 APG and 1.1 SPG this year.

As Hollinger writes, the Trail Blazers could sign Nurkic to a contract extension that starts at $14.4MM, a 120% annual increase of his current salary. However, Hollinger believes that Nurkic should be able to net significantly more than that in free agency this summer. If they re-sign Nurkic and retain Josh Hart, the Blazers would likely be an over-the-cap team, allowing them to retain their $20MM+ trade exception.

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

Injured Timberwolves point guard McKinley Wright IV, currently on a two-way deal with the club, will start taking contact in team practices as he continues to recover from a left UCL issue, per Minnesota’s official PR team (via Twitter). The Timberwolves are set to reassess Wright on Sunday. The 23-year-old rookie out of Colorado has appeared in just three games with Minnesota this year.
Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. will soon scrimmage with the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s NBA G League affiliate, per Mike Singer of the Denver Post. Porter, still working to rehabilitate following a December 1 back surgery, has already resumed one-on-one contact workouts. “You got a 6-foot-10 guy that shoots it like that, and then you start to remind yourself, ‘Man, like, last year, before we had injuries to [guard Jamal Murray], we all felt we had a chance to win it,’” head coach Michael Malone said. “Whenever we get those guys back, this year or next year, we feel the same way. We have a chance to win it when we get fully healthy… As of right now, still in the early steps of trying to re-integrate those guys back slowly, and as they get cleared to do more and more things, then, obviously, we can ramp it up with them.”
The Nuggets have hired former NBA forward Darrell Arthur to serve as a basketball operations associate for the team, Denver announced (Twitter link). Arthur, 33, played for nine NBA seasons, appearing in 503 games. He was with the Nuggets from the 2013/14 season through the 2017/18 season.

Michael Porter Jr. Eyeing March Return

February 27th, 2022 at 5:45pm CST by JD Shaw

Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has progressed in his rehab from lumbar spine surgery and could be cleared for on-court contact within the next week, agent Mark Bartelstein tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Porter is hoping to return to Denver’s lineup at some point in March. Wojnarowski says that once the fourth-year forward is cleared for contact, it’ll just be a matter of him going through a final ramp-up period.

However, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone cautioned fans to take the report with a grain of salt, as Mike Singer of the Denver Post (Twitter link) relays.

“I would say don’t listen to those reports. … They didn’t come from me, they didn’t come from [president of basketball operations] Tim Connelly,” Malone said. “They didn’t come from anybody within the Denver Nuggets. I would say, be careful what you listen to and what you read.”

The 23-year-old Porter underwent surgery three months ago and has played just nine games this season. He did appear in 61 games last season, averaging 19.0 points on 54% shooting from the floor and 45% shooting from three-point range.

Denver owns the sixth-best record in the Western Conference (35-25) despite Porter’s absence. The team also hopes to have Jamal Murray return from a torn ACL before the playoffs, Wojnarowski reports.

Porter signed a five-year, $172.5MM contract extension with the Nuggets last offseason. He was drafted No. 14 overall by the franchise in 2018.

Nuggets Notes: Murray, MPJ, Morris, Trade Deadline

February 12th, 2022 at 12:19pm CST by Rory Maher

A source tells Mike Singer of The Denver Post that Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. are expected to be physically cleared to return to action before the regular season ends. However, a person close to Murray tells Singer that the prolonged rehab process as he recovers from a torn ACL has been more mentally challenging than Murray anticipated.

The Nuggets say Murray will return when he’s ready, both physically and mentally. So even if he’s physically cleared, he might not return this season. Ultimately Murray will decide when that exact date is.

Porter’s situation is different, Singer writes, because he’s already had multiple back surgeries and understands how his body responds to injury, surgery and rehab. Porter has progressed rapidly and has been going extensive shooting drills after practices.

“We couldn’t be happier with where he’s at in terms of his recovery from surgery and his progression towards playing,” Mark Bartelstein, Porter’s agent, told The Denver Post. “He badly wants to play, but we need to check all the boxes before that happens. He’s in as good of a place as we could’ve imagined.”

The Nuggets have actually had to caution Porter not to overexert himself in the recovery process, as they want him healthy long-term after inking him to a rookie scale max extension prior to the season. There’s no official timeline for either player to return.

Here’s more from Denver:

Guard Monte Morris was absent during the team’s loss to Boston Friday night because he’s in the NBA’s concussion protocol, as Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets.
The Nuggets made a minor trade last month and were active ahead of the deadline, but several possibilities fell through. President of basketball operations Tim Connelly said he was slightly disappointed about the inactivity, per Singer of The Denver Post. Appearing on Altitude Radio Friday morning, Connelly also said that it would be “irresponsible” not try and build around reigning MVP Nikola Jokic in the midst of his prime.
In a separate article for The Post, Singer explains that the Nuggets didn’t need to make moves because they recognize that the potential returns of Murray and/or Porter could be more impactful than any deal they had lined up. Coach Michael Malone explained that was the case. “We’re not in a situation where we feel we need to make a move,” Malone said. “… We understand that this year, without Jamal and Michael, it’s different than most.”
Matt Schubert of The Denver Post graded Connelly’s deadline performance, giving him a B-plus. Schubert writes that the absences of two of the team’s top three players has put a ceiling on the team, and another trade on the fringes likely wouldn’t have changed the season outcome significantly — only the return of those missing players might. He also notes that Connelly didn’t trade away any future first-round picks, which is important because he’s proven to be adept at finding hidden gems on draft night.

Nuggets Granted Disabled Player Exception

January 31st, 2022 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets have received a disabled player exception as a result of Michael Porter Jr.‘s back surgery, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The exception is worth $2,629,368, half of Porter’s $5,258,735 salary.

A salary cap exception designed to give teams extra flexibility when a player suffers a major injury, the disabled player exception can be used to sign a free agent, to claim a player off waivers, or to acquire a player in a trade. The exception can only be used on a single player and can only accommodate a player on a one-year deal. A free agent signee can’t get a multiyear contract, and any trade or waiver target must be in the final year of his contract.

Although the disabled player exception gives a team extra cap flexibility, it doesn’t open up an extra spot on the 15-man roster. The club must have a roster spot available to use the DPE to add a player.

The fact that Denver has been granted a disabled player exception related to Porter’s injury is interesting, since multiple reports this month have suggested the forward could make his return this spring.

The Nuggets receiving a DPE doesn’t mean that Porter can’t return this season. However, it does mean an NBA-designated physician determined he’s more likely than not to be sidelined through June 15. That suggests Denver’s medical staff may be more bullish about Porter’s recovery timeline than an independent doctor is.

The Nuggets will have until March 10 to use their new disabled player exception. It would expire at that point if it hasn’t been used. If Porter returns before March 10 (which seems like a long shot), Denver would lose the disabled player exception. If the team uses the DPE to acquire a player and then MPJ returns later in the season, the player acquired using the exception wouldn’t be affected.

Besides the Nuggets, the Cavaliers ($8.9MM) and Pelicans ($1.9MM) have also been granted disabled player exceptions this season for season-ending injuries to Ricky Rubio and Kira Lewis, respectively.

Western Notes: Porter Jr., Bane, Jazz, Rockets

January 20th, 2022 at 9:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Despite undergoing back surgery at the beginning of last month, Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. reportedly could return this season.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski expanded on that possibility (video link), saying that in conversations with team president Tim Connelly and Porter’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, they “love the way he’s coming along.”

“There’s optimism we’re going to see him again this season,” Wojnarowski said.

That would be a huge boost to the Nuggets’ chances during the postseason. Porter signed a five-year max extension in September.

We have more from the Western Conference:

Desmond Bane says he deserves serious consideration for the Most Improved Player award, as he told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. “A lot of times, they don’t want to give it to guys like myself or Jerami Grant,” the Grizzlies guard said on Haynes’ podcast. “But your role changes as you get better. As you improve and as you get better, you get more leeway, you get more opportunities. That’s just how the game goes. They’re not going to give an opportunity to a guy that isn’t ready for it. … So I think that I should definitely be in the conversation.” Bane also believes he could take down the 3-point shooting contest on All-Star weekend if he gets the chance. “If I get invited, I plan to do it and I plan to win it,” he said.
Amid reports that the Jazz are looking for a wing upgrade, head coach Quin Snyder hinted that the team needs to do something about its defensive slippage. Utah was defeated by Houston 116-111 on Wednesday and Snyder lamented the team’s performance on that end of the court, Sarah Todd of the Deseret News writes. “We just had multiple breakdowns over the course of the game, in different capacities, defensively,” he said. “We were helping when we shouldn’t have been helping, not recognizing personnel situations, not focused on the details of what we’re trying to do on the defensive end.”
Speaking of the Rockets, they could be very active before the trade deadline as they continue their rebuild. The Athletic’s John Hollinger and Kelly Iko explore which players are most likely to be moved and their trade value. Hollinger sees a potential avenue for moving Eric Gordon to the Lakers and outlines what they could get in return.

Michael Porter Jr. Hasn’t Been Ruled Out For Season

January 13th, 2022 at 5:25pm CST by Rory Maher

Following a successful back surgery on December 1, Michael Porter Jr. hasn’t officially been ruled out for the season by the Nuggets, a source tells Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Both player and team have been encouraged by his recovery thus far, but there’s no timeline for his return to action. Denver is expected to be cautious with Porter, Singer notes.

Porter has been taking set shots prior to recent games and felt immediate relief after the surgery, Singer writes. The procedure in December was the 23-year-old’s third back surgery — he also went under the knife during his first and only college season, and again prior to his rookie season in 2018, which delayed his NBA debut by a year.

Those back issues caused his draft stock to drop, allowing the Nuggets to nab him with the No. 14 overall pick in ’18. Denver appeared to be reaping the benefits of rolling the dice on Porter when he enjoyed a breakout season in 2020/21, averaging 19.0 PPG and 7.3 RPG on .542/.445/.791 shooting in 61 games (31.3 MPG).

However, MPJ battled back pain in his first nine games this season before the injury forced him to the sidelines — he posted just 9.9 PPG and 6.6 RPG on .359/.308/.556 shooting in 29.4 minutes per contest. The young forward’s five-year, maximum-salary extension is set to go into effect in 2022/23.

In addition to Porter, there’s a chance that Jamal Murray could return in advance of the postseason, Singer adds. Murray is nine months removed from a torn left ACL suffered last April.

Injury Notes: DiVincenzo, Bulls, Wiseman, Nuggets

January 4th, 2022 at 8:25am CST by Luke Adams

Donte DiVincenzo‘s string of bad luck continued over the weekend, as the Bucks guard rolled his surgically repaired left ankle during warmups on Saturday and is expected to be sidelined for a little while, according to Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link).

The Bucks haven’t issued a formal update on DiVincenzo’s status or his potential recovery timeline, but Owczarksi says there’s a belief he’ll be out for “a few weeks.”

It’s a frustrating setback for DiVincenzo, who missed the start of the season while recovering from ankle surgery, then contracted COVID-19 when he was about to return last month. He appeared in just three games for the Bucks before sustaining his latest injury.

Here are a few more health-related updates from around the NBA:

The Bulls are expected to be without guard Javonte Green and forward Tyler Cook for a little while. As Jamal Collier of ESPN writes, head coach Billy Donovan said on Monday that Green will likely miss two-to-four weeks due to a strained groin. Donovan also stated that Cook has a “pretty significant” ankle sprain and will be out for a couple weeks, tweets K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.
The Warriors hope that second-year center James Wiseman, who participated in the team’s shootaround on Monday, can begin contact drills next week, says Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports Bay Area. Wiseman has exited the health and safety protocols, but continues to work his way back from the knee surgery that ended his rookie season.
In a recent interview with Sam Amick of The Athletic, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said the team will give stars Jamal Murray (ACL) and Michael Porter Jr. (back) all the time they need to recover from their respective injuries. Unlike Porter, who is expected to return in 2022/23, Murray has a chance to return to the court this season, though Malone warned that’s not a given. “I’ve told him many times — and I think it’s important for him to hear it from me — (that) there’s absolutely zero pressure for him to come back this year,” Malone said. “At the same time, I tell him, ‘Listen, if it’s in the cards for you to come back and play this year, great. If it’s not in the cards for you to come back and play this year, great.’ He’s gonna come back when he is ready.”

Michael Porter Jr., Bol Bol Clear Protocols But Remain Unavailable

December 28th, 2021 at 1:41pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Nuggets forwards Bol Bol and Michael Porter Jr. have both cleared the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols, per Mike Singer of the Denver Post. Singer adds that neither player will be available tonight for the team’s game against the Warriors.

After playing just nine games this season, Porter underwent a back surgery and is expected to remain out for the year. Singer notes that Bol, who has re-joined the team, continues to recover from his tenure in the league’s coronavirus protocols. This sounds like Bol will need to finesse his conditioning before his return to the court.

The 22-year-old Bol, a third-year player out of Oregon, has yet to carve out meaningful rotation minutes with the team this year. Across 11 games, he is averaging just 4.6 MPG.

Denver is currently grappling with a slew of absences which have adversely impacted their contender status this season. The Nuggets are just 16-16 this year. Porter, one of the team’s most important contributors when healthy, is out for the year. Guard Jamal Murray, the team’s best player behind MVP center Nikola Jokic, has been sidelined all year as he recovers from an ACL tear, though he may return in the spring. Wing PJ Dozier is expected to miss the season with an ACL tear of his own.

The availability of guard Monte Morris for tonight’s game has been downgraded to questionable as he grapples with left knee soreness, per Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (via Twitter).