[Shams] Denver trades Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick to Brooklyn for Cam Johnson

[bonita_the_frog]

Denver saved like $17 million in salary per year

Giving away a completely unprotected first rounder when your star player is long gone is crazy to me.

Jokic will be 36, I think. In no way does that mean long gone.

I agree, considering KD is still shooting better than ever and will probably still be scoring 25ppg at age 40, its a safe bet Jokic will still be stuffing the stat sheet at age 36 and older

[JM00n69]

Player-wise this ia a downgrade for Denver but they shaved so much money and now also have Trade exception, its a solid deal.
Nuggets will need to find away to improve defensive rebounding since they were bad at it and MPJ was solid on the boards.
I hope Johnson can improve his shape and stay healthy. If he does that its a win for Denver.

I don’t think it is downgrade in talent all.

Cam Johnson is worst shooter(good one but worse), worse rebounder, and just a bit better defender. He is also more injured then MPJ. MPJ was healthiest Nugget outside of Jokic in last 3 seasons.

Compairing thier stats againt each other yes but team fit matters especially when you've got Jokic on your team. MPJ was a very one dimensional offensive piece. Yes he could shoot over anyone but he never developed a drive/post game and when he got the ball he would shoot it. As good as his stats might look to you he had a tendency to miss everything for a 4-5 games straight.

The fact that this trade allowed the signing of BB and will give enough cap space to hopefully get Al in we're winning next year.

[JM00n69]

Giving away a completely unprotected first rounder when your star player is long gone is crazy to me.

Jokic will be 36, I think. In no way does that mean long gone.

I agree, considering KD is still shooting better than ever and will probably still be scoring 25ppg at age 40, its a safe bet Jokic will still be stuffing the stat sheet at age 36 and older

The plan is to win next year. Not draft a 1st round 20 year old in 7years time when Jok is 36. How is this even a topic?

[nomansland]

Player-wise this ia a downgrade for Denver but they shaved so much money and now also have Trade exception, its a solid deal.
Nuggets will need to find away to improve defensive rebounding since they were bad at it and MPJ was solid on the boards.
I hope Johnson can improve his shape and stay healthy. If he does that its a win for Denver.

Porter is a better rebounder, but other than that I think Cam’s better at every single skill there is on a basketball court. Better scorer, better passer, better defender. Probably gonna even look like a better shooter with Jokic throwing him passes.

Is Porter a better rebounder or does he just get a lot of rebounds cause two guys are boxing out Jokic? His lack of motor and awareness pops out for someone who gets a lot of rebounds.

Porter's a good rebounder because of his height and timing, and lack of motor is an unfair criticism. The guy works very hard.

But he is not a guy who goes in banging to get boards, which is a bit frustrating sometimes.

[nomansland]

I like this deal for both teams.

People saying Porter sucks don't know what they're talking about. Not liking his contract is fair. Saying he disappeared in a couple of important playoff series is fair. But everyone forgets that he willingly took a back seat and lesser role for the good of the team. Jordi Fernandez was an assistant in Denver and knows all about Porter, and he had to have bought in on this idea. I bet this ends up opening up Porter's game a bit. But either way it's low risk for the Nets and they get another pick.

Whether Johnson is better than Porter is going to be debated until we're mid-way through next season, but it looks like a pretty lateral move for the Nuggets. But not having cap flexibility was an albatross they needed to be rid of and they did it. Now they can get some depth. Plus everyone assumes they Nuggets are going to suck in 2032. You really think 36 year-old Jokic is going to be so bad that the Nuggets are in the lottery? The pick could end up being meaningless.

[psimanic1]

just look at it like this, you have chance to winone or two in next two years if you are healthy come playoffs, or you have chance to get good draft pick in 7 years which could become new Jokic, or new Zeke Nnaji, I would rather pick first option and live with it tbh...

[The-Power]

Don't get this for Brooklyn. MPJ is mid.

ALL about that unprotected 1st 7 years out.

I guarantee that the Nets GM, coach, etc will not be there 7 years from now. MPJ is overpaid and does nothing for them.

So your argument is that GMs should not do the best deals for the future of the franchise because they may not be there when it's time to cash in? I'd think franchises are looking for GMs who are not thinking like this precisely to ensure that their GM does whatever is best for the franchise rather than himself.

Be that as it may, I find it very odd to evaluate the trade negatively as an outsider because the GM is making decisions based on what's best for the franchise. Isn't that what we – as fans – all hope our GMs would do? Also, Brooklyn is not trying to win right now. They have made that perfectly clear. So what should the GM do if not looking to pick up assets? Trade for the best available players rather than accumulating assets so they can go from worst team in the league (as the tank intends) to a still not competitive team that misses the playoffs but wins a couple more games?

Finally, the GM also doesn't have to wait until 2032 for the pick to matter. Once the Nets feel like they are ready to use their assets to acquire an established or up-and-coming star via trade, or they want to trade up in a future draft, they can include this pick to get it done. Because whether you agree with it or not, an unprotected pick down the road from a team like Denver clearly holds value around the league.

[kan_t]

It's a win win trade. MPJ on paper is the better player but he's unplayable down the stretch in playoff due to his defense. This trade free up MLE for the Nuggets which could help them to address the depth issue.

For the Nets an unprotected FRP in 32 is a very good gamble.

[Alatan]

Are Cam and MPJ that different?

Basically a wash trade

Cam Johnson has significantly less injury risk IMO, and is slightly more reliable on defense. Porter is more capable of handling the ball and creating his own shot.

Absolutely not true. MPJ could not create his shot if his life depended on it. Have you ever watched him outside of highschool where he was healthy and a foot taller than everyone else?

[Ryoga Hibiki]

This is one of the few trades that could have made sense for Denver:
* you don't lose value on the floor trading Mike for Cam
* you get a very sweet 17m saving, opening almost the full MLE
* you can stay below the 2nd Apron even with Braun extension, as long as you don't sign a multiyear deal with the full MLE
* potentially, they could even be below the tax line. Not very sexy from a basketball standpoint, but the Kroenke's would love it. Tough sell to the fans, but they could achieve it stretching Saric
* the 32 was potentially their last bullet, it would have been better to trade the 31 so that next year they could have opened the 33

For Brooklyn a 32 pick from an asset depleted Denver with a 37yo Jokic could be a very premium asset, in a few years. Excellent use of their cap space, and they might reclaim some of MPj's value to trade him as an expiring next year

[Alatan]

Denver did what they had to do. They needed to get out of that MPJ contract, and really the only way to do it was to use an unprotected 1st to get out of it.

But this is the issue with Denver. Cam is more consistent than MPJ, but you’re still dealing with someone that struggles yo stay healthy and does anything outside of shooting 3s. And now you’re down another asset, which they didn’t have much to begin with.

So that climb to getting back to having a legit title contending roster still just seems almost impossible. They have to really hope that there is a team that has a GM desperate enough to overpay to trade for Murray.

Because this trade doesn’t really get them all that much closer to being a contending team. It just got them out of that MPJ contract. Just 1 less asset to use to try and get a legit #2 option

Haven't pulled the statistics but Cam seemed to develop as a ball handler and scorer last year, may be selective memory but he was less frustrating to watch and had quite a few gritty finishes. Big if, but if he's healthy I think he'll improve the Nuggets in more ways than just three-point shooting (basketball IQ, leadership)...

He did have a career best when it came to lowest FG% assisted on. But it was still at 55% of his shots being assisted on, so still pretty high.

Plus to be fair, I don’t think Denver really needs another ball handler, unless we’re talking an upgrade over Murray. With how much Jokic/Murray touch the ball, that offense really doesn’t need another on ball creator.

I will say this, I trust Cam’s jumper more than MPJ’s. I think MPJ when hot, is on a different level. But he’s just so damn inconsistent. I do think Cam will be the more consistent player. But he’s still a bad defender and a significantly worse rebounder than MPJ.

So on court impact, I think they will kind of be a wash. But getting out of that MPJ contract and getting better consistency from 3 is a win.

MPJs rebounding is overrated. Dude mostly grabs uncontested defensive rebounds after others box out. Sometimes even almost fumbling the ball by trying to grab it from his teammate. He is terrible at actually securing contested boards or boxing out.

[ORLMagicGirl15]

I really wanted Cam Johnson on our team. I wish him luck. Now we have to deal with MPJ in the East. He kills us almost every game.

[HMFFL]

I look forward to seeing MPJ average more than 13 field goal attempts per game.

What I really look forward to seeing is if he has any passion for the game because he never stepped up for Denver when they needed him.

[Alatan]

Great move for the Nuggets. Getting rid of MPJ is addition by subtraction. Dude is horribly overrated and some people will see it in the next season.
Im not that high on Cam but fro. what ive watched of him he is a much smarter player than MPJ and can actually dribble the ball. Moves well without the ball as well.
And a major part is freeing up 17+ million this and the next offseason, witch allows the Nuggets to get depth pieces for this season and resign Braun and possibly Watson next season.
The pick will be missed but the Nuggets wasted enough time pussyfooting around when they have an ATG player in his prime.

[junot111]

Mpj has become a bit underrated. Cam Johnson might be more solid as a two way player but I don't think he has close to the flame thrower ability that mpj has when he catches fire. He can't dribble or create, but he can shoot over anyone which was perfect with jokic and unlocked another dimension to the nuggets offense. Meanwhile cam Johnson hasn't played 60 games in a season since 2021. The financial aspect makes sense but I think people will come to appreciate mpj's value to Denver as time goes on

[THE J0KER]

Both teams get exactly what they want, but the Nets need to wait more for full benefits. MPJ was awful during the 2025 playoff only because of injury, so he will give the Nets better numbers next season than Johnson ever gave, but that difference is not worth $15M per year difference next two seasons for sure. But also, Brooklyn is literally the last team next two seasons that should worry about the salary cap, while the 2032 unprotected pick will be more likely a lottery pick.

[RipHamilton]

Great move. This is exactly what Nuggets needed—depth and players with basketball IQ.

Don't think of Nets Cam Johnson; think of the Nuggets/Jokic version of him. If he's healthy, his performance will only improve with the Nuggets. He's a smart player who knows how to play without the ball, and with Jokic on the court, everyone looks better. When healthy, he'll even resemble Suns' Cam Johnson.

And then there's Bruce Brown—another great asset. If he's healthy, he's a terrific defender with experience that's really needed for the playoffs.

Right now, the Nuggets require defensive, strong rotational players. Pevious GM was a disaster—they’re cleaning up that mess now. MPJ is a nice guy and a great shooter, but he's inconsistent, and his salary is way too high. It's a smart move to shed that salary burden.

Now they have to deal with that problematic MLE option on Saric with a player option—his salary really hurts the roster.

If they could add someone like a Yabusele-type player or Mo Wagner, that's exactly what they need right now. A backup PG would not hurt either.

[Mac1958]

If Johnson can play 70+ games, this is a lateral move for the starting lineup.

The key for Denver -- and Jokic has brought this up as a concern -- is getting deeper. This trade allows for that, starting with Bruce Brown. Now they have enough money to go after one or two key bench contributors. That matters.

[ROballer]

Great move. This is exactly what Nuggets needed—depth and players with basketball IQ.

Don't think of Nets Cam Johnson; think of the Nuggets/Jokic version of him. If he's healthy, his performance will only improve with the Nuggets. He's a smart player who knows how to play without the ball, and with Jokic on the court, everyone looks better. When healthy, he'll even resemble Suns' Cam Johnson.

And then there's Bruce Brown—another great asset. If he's healthy, he's a terrific defender with experience that's really needed for the playoffs.

Right now, the Nuggets require defensive, strong rotational players. Pevious GM was a disaster—they’re cleaning up that mess now. MPJ is a nice guy and a great shooter, but he's inconsistent, and his salary is way too high. It's a smart move to shed that salary burden.

Now they have to deal with that problematic MLE option on Saric with a player option—his salary really hurts the roster.

If they could add someone like a Yabusele-type player or Mo Wagner, that's exactly what they need right now. A backup PG would not hurt either.

Nets Cam Johnson averaged 19/4/3 on 47/39/90 shooting splits last year.

After a few bad games in silly season, he was damn near close to the 50/40/90 club the whole year.
That's with defenses actually noticing him, as you said, his game will unlock even more with the gravity Jokic supplies on a nightly basis.

People are vastly underrate him. Calling the move lateral or a downgrade for the Nugs is borderline insulting and dumb.

Denver will be much better just with this simple swap.
Let alone adding Brown and a MLE guy because of the
salary relief.

[BelgradeNugget]

This move was not about Nuggets ability to sign another free agent, but Nuggets ability to resign Braun and Watson next season while being under 2nd apron. If they kept MPJ, with Braun and Watson new contracts, they would have been over 2nd apron next season atleast $15M. In 2 years they would have been in the same situation Boston is, getting rid of championship core anyway posible to get under 2nd apron (Porzingis for Nijang and Jrue for Simons).
Boston is now in situation they must build new contender again when Tatum comes back, Denver will be contender for the next 4-5 years.
So I don't expect them to sign 2 expensive FAs, after Brown, they need 1 backup C and they are fine.

As for Nets they get very good player, super profesional, fighter, with championship experiance and valuable pick.
It is win-win deal.