Michael Porter Jr. returns to the Brooklyn lineup after an absence amid trade speculation
The Brooklyn Nets will wait Michael Porter Jr. back into their lineup on Monday vs Dallas Mavericks. Porter missed Sunday’s 103-98 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies for vacation. The absence has led some fans to speculate about a potential trade amid several reports of interest from teams in the forward.
However, Porter had sat out Brooklyn’s previous three straight games before Sunday’s layoff. The loss to the Grizzlies dropped the Nets to 0-7 on the season in games Porter missed. Despite shooting 36 of 88 (41 percent) from the field, Jordi Fernandez’s team came back from a 16-point deficit to take a 98-80 lead with three minutes remaining. However, they allowed Memphis to go on a 13-0 run to close out the game, missing their final five shots.
While Porter’s return should boost the Nets’ offense in Dallas, they will be without several other rotation pieces for the second half of back-to-back games.
Michael Porter Jr. returns, but the Nets are without a player against the Mavericks
Egor Demin (Management of left plantar fascia injuries), Cam Thomas (Left hamstring injury management) and Ziaire Williams (illness) will miss the game. Like Porter, Demin has sat out the Nets’ last three straight after missing most of the offseason with a torn plantar fascia. meanwhile, Thomas was on a minutes restriction after his return from his fourth sprained left hamstring in the past year.
It’s not surprising to see Brooklyn take a conservative approach to injury management, given the team’s push this season. The Nets have lost six of their last seven games after a 7-3 stretch that cost them a spot in the lottery. They were without at least one starter in six of their seven games during a 1-6 stretch.
The Nets enter Monday’s game are fifth in the draw tableone game ahead of the Utah Jazz in sixth and two behind the Washington Wizards in fourth. The Mavericks are 1.5 games behind seventh-place Brooklyn and just lost Anthony Davis for an extended period to a hand injury.
2026-01-12 17:03:00
