Porter Jr. is probable to face his former team for the first time. Revenge looms against a depleted Denver squad as Nets eye a crucial win.
After missing two consecutive games for the Brooklyn Nets in what has been an incredible 2025-26 campaign, Michael Porter Jr.'s potential first opponent in return could not be more fitting.
The supremely gifted scoring threat and former lottery pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets received an important new injury designation Saturday evening from ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel, one that could see the All-Star hopeful match up against his former team for the first time in his career.
"The Nets are listing Michael Porter Jr., who has missed two straight games with an illness, as probable for tomorrow’s game against Denver," Siegel shared via X.
Following the Nuggets' decision to trade Porter Jr. and a 2032 first-round pick to Brooklyn in exchange for Cam Johnson this past summer, the 2023 NBA champion will get his first chance to exact revenge against a vulnerable, injury-riddled Denver squad on Sunday.
With the Nuggets' 3-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić, back-up big man Jonas Valančiūnas, fringe All-Star forward Aaron Gordon and rising guard Christian Braun all dealing with separate injury misfortune, the Nets could be primed to steal a victory from the dominant Western Conference force.
Of course, Denver's excellent offensive force Jamal Murray will remain in control at the point guard position, and he'll give even Brooklyn's toughest perimeter defenders a massive challenge thanks to his versatile scoring attack.
On the other side of things, Porter Jr. will be itching to claim a win over the only team he'd come to know through the first six seasons of his NBA career.
Through his first 26 appearances as a Net before going down for a short period with an illness, Porter Jr. has averaged an incredibly efficient 25.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists, putting forth 49.6/41.0/81.2 shooting splits in the process.
The 6-foot-10 scorer's three-point shooting, specifically, has been marvelous on high volume to begin the new campaign, as he's managed to knock down 41.0% of his 9.2 attempts from distance.
Heading into this one, Brooklyn's young and energetic backcourt will try their hardest to shut down Murray and cut off any scoring angles he may receive. Coming off of a 20-point defeat against the Washington Wizards on Friday night, the Nets' young pieces like Nolan Traoré, Drake Powell and Jalen Wilson should provide a defensive spark after key individual performances on that end.
A Murray-led offense will remain a tall task for the Nets' defense to contain, but any matchup against Denver where Jokić isn't involved should be viewed as a winnable one, especially considering that Porter Jr.'s external motivation could lead to him single-handedly fueling the Nets' offense.