Michael Porter Jr. reacts to David Adelman claiming he wouldn’t agree with the way the Nuggets used him

Michael Porter Jr. spreading his wings as an NBA center. Next year in a complementary role with Denver Nuggets, Porter Jr. emerged as an All-Star candidate after his trade in Brooklyn Nets.

Despite this, the head coach of the Nuggets David Adelman no regrets on how the team has used the forward during his tenure.

“(Mike’s) had a lot of freedom here. I think this trade was good for everybody,” Adelman said ahead of Sunday’s Nets-Nuggets matchup. “I think whenever you get the whole thing, the role was right. We know how talented he is…Mike had that ability; he always did. But for us, he made sacrifices. Our two-man game was successful. And him in the corner with Aaron Gordon on the dunk was the right thing. I thought we used him in the right way. I’m sure he would have totally won, which is fine with me. But that’s fine. It’s cool to see him have more freedom under Jordi (Fernandez).

David Adelman says Nuggets trade for Michael Porter Jr. was “good for everyone”:

“I thought we used him in the right way. I’m sure he wouldn’t agree with me completely, which is fine. But we’ve won a lot of games doing it that way. It’s great to see him have more freedom under Jordy.” pic.twitter.com/dh2k3H6DND

— Eric Slater (@erikslater_) January 4, 2026

Porter Jr. served primarily as a point guard during his six seasons alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray in Denver. The 6-foot-10 sharpshooter has been effective in that role, averaging 17.1 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists on 49/40/78 shooting over the past three seasons.

Michael Porter Jr. begins with the Nuggets’ tenure in the midst of a breakout season with the Nets

however, Porter Jr. showed off his full range of offensive skills as the Nets’ leading option, he averaged 25.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists on .495/.408/.825 shooting. He, Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo are the only NBA players to average such efficiency this season.

While Porter Jr. was content to play a limited role for a championship team in Denver, he always knew he was capable of much more.

“I think anytime you have a team that talented, a championship-caliber team, there’s going to be guys that make sacrifices,” Porter Jr. said. “Some of the shots and some of the ways they probably could have used me, we had enough good players to be able to make a good shot in a different way. I didn’t have to come off the screen and be highly utilized that way and shoot some of the tough shots that I shoot here that I can make, but there it might not be considered the highest percentage team that we can get.”

“But it’s good to be able to show what I’m capable of and get some recognition. It’s hard as a player when you know what you can do and you’re asked to do something different and then people criticize you for it. That can be hard. But that’s part of the NBA, that’s part of being adaptable, and that’s just accepting a lot of years on your good team. And do what the coach asks you in whatever situation you’re in.”

Asked Michael Porter Jr. about his departure from the Nets and David Adelman saying the Nuggets used him right:

“I think any time you have a talented team, a championship-caliber team, there’s going to be guys that make sacrifices. Some of the shots and some of the ways that . . . https://t.co/u1s8rV0L2z pic.twitter.com/3UKa672vJI

— Eric Slater (@erikslater_) January 5, 2026

Porter Jr. continued his All-Star caliber campaign Sunday by taking down his former team at Barclays Center. He had 27 points, 11 rebounds and five assists on 8-of-17 shooting in the Nets’ 127-115 win over the Nuggets, who were without Jokic, Cam Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas.

“I was excited for that first game against them. Really, being traded and how the whole thing kind of worked out, I couldn’t wait to play those guys, for sure. It’s been circled on my calendar for a minute,” Porter Jr. said. “I probably felt a little more nervous about this one than uh than a lot of other games… It was definitely a weird experience. Jamal mentioned it before tip-off, like it’s so weird going against you instead of being with you. Because those are my brothers. I’ve been with those guys for so many years. I’ve been with those guys more than my family every day.

“We won a championship together. A couple of those guys over there are some of my best friends. So competing against each other instead of with each other is definitely a different experience, but that’s the nature of the sport. And it’s cool that you can have friendships outside of basketball because those are still my guys.”