Porter's Scoring Surge, Johnson's Struggles: Nuggets Trade Revisited

0:00It's March 5th, here's your NBA news in two minutes. Last summer, the Denver Nuggets traded Michael Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson. At the time, fans and analysts nearly universally praised the move. It saved the team a ton of money since Johnson earns about half as much as Porter over the next two seasons. That flexibility let Denver add key debt players like Jonas Valencia-Unis, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bruce Brown. The trade looked like a straight upgrade because Johnson and Porter play similar roles as sharp shooting wings. Many even call Johnson equal to or better than Porter at a bargain price. Eight months later though, opinions have completely shifted. Porter has become one of the league's top scorers in Brooklyn while Johnson faces bus label in Denver. Porter put up 18.2 points per game last season on 40% 3 points shooting at high volume. He scored 20 or more 29 times and rarely dipped into single digits. Johnson by contrast has hit 20 just 3 times this year and scored under 10 and 43% of his

1:05games. Johnson still shoots 40% from 3 overall and the Nuggets win his minutes by 7.4 points per 100 possessions. Their top lineup with him, Tomal Murray, Christian Braun, Aaron Gordon, and Nicola Yokich crushes opponents. But he's missed big shots lately, like 14 of his last 18 threes, including a potential game winner against Oklahoma City. The Nuggets boasts the number one offense in the league, yet they've struggled lately against winning teams. Johnson knows the pressure to step up like Porter did. With a salary cap relief and added depth, the trade still has merits, but many wonder of Denver would redo it today, especially after including a 2032 first round pick. Appreciation to our sponsor for back in this episode. Do not just fall asleep, drift into what you're listening to, S-O-L-I-SoliPillow.com.