Nets' high-scoring forward addresses trade speculation, declaring his happiness and desire to stay as Brooklyn weighs his future.
With the 2025-26 NBA trade season in full swing, the Brooklyn Nets should be mentioned in league circles as a seller plenty of times in the coming weeks.
Specifically, their potential first-time All-Star scorer Michael Porter Jr. will continue to headline Nets trade rumors all the way up until the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
Averaging career-bests across the board with 25.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists on a fantastic 62.9% true shooting percentage in his first campaign with the Nets, the ex-Denver Nuggets NBA champion was recently questioned about the idea of a long-term future with Brooklyn by The New York Post's Brian Lewis on Saturday night.
"Yeah, I love it here," Porter Jr. shared with Lewis.
"So whatever team wants and appreciates what I bring to the table, then that's where I want to be," Porter Jr. continued. "And I feel like they do here...Like I said, if they want me here, I'd love to be here."
After being dealt to the Nets along with a 2032 first-round pick from the Nuggets this past summer in exchange for Cam Johnson, Porter Jr. has authored an incredible campaign through his first 26 appearances with his new franchise.
Interestingly enough, his marvelous and ridiculously efficient beginning to the season could see Brooklyn's front office make an unexpected decision to keep their hands on the 27-year-old forward.
Moving forward, the Nets will need at least one dynamic player that's worth watching as the franchise continues its long-winded rebuild. If Brooklyn's general manager Sean Marks is hit with an offer that he simply cannot refuse prior to deadline day, then it's his call. With that being said, every team needs at least one player to attract fans to the arena on a nightly basis.
It appears as though Porter Jr. has acclimated to the city and team very well, giving himself a chance to actually last with the team through the deadline and into the 2026-2027 campaign.
Aside from his on-court production, his apparent commitment to the team from the outset has given yet another indication that he might survive the deadline. Especially for rebuilding teams, it can become extremely difficult to find star-level talents who are willing to stick around and assist with ushering the team into a new era.
Despite countless rumors and trade scenarios throwing Porter Jr. to the Milwaukee Bucks, Detroit Pistons or Golden State Warriors, his recent comments should give Nets fans a semblance of hope that their "franchise guy" for the interim could remain in town for the foreseeable future.