Michael Porter Jr. Named to All-Bubble Second Team

Saturday afternoon, it was reported that Nuggets rookie Michael Porter Jr. was selected to the NBA’s All-Bubble Second Team.

On Aug. 11, the league announced they would honor the best performers from the NBA Restart seeding games with a NBA Bubble MVP and two All-Bubble teams.

Playing in seven of Denver’s eight seeding games, Porter Jr. averaged 22.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting 55 percent from the field, 42 percent from three and 93 percent from the free-throw line.

With injuries to Nuggets’ starters Will Barton and Gary Harris, Porter Jr. was slotted into Denver’s starting lineup and made the most of the opportunity.

After a rocky performance in just his second career start during Denver’s first seeding game against the Miami Heat, Porter Jr. played four straight games with averages of 29.3 points and 12.5 rebounds while shooting 56 percent from the field, 47 percent from three and 96 percent from the free-throw line.

Porter Jr.’s play also earned him a permanent spot in Denver’s starting lineup heading into the playoffs.

Porter Jr., who was once the No. 1 recruit in the nation coming out of high school, fell to the Nuggets’ 14th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft due to concerns about a back injury he suffered in college.

Porter Jr. subsequently missed his entire rookie season, but Denver still finished with the second-best record in the Western Conference and reached the second round of the playoffs.

Since Denver is such a deep and talented team, Porter Jr. struggled to crack the Nuggets’ rotation this season, as before the NBA Restart he was averaging just 7.5 points and 14.0 minutes per game.

Despite his remarkable play though, Porter Jr. finished the regular season averaging 9.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists while shooting 51 percent from the field and 42 percent from three. As a result, this makes him an early candidate for next season’s Most Improved Player award. If Porter Jr. maintains his production and spot in the Nuggets’ rotation, his averages are bound to increase.

In terms of fit, Porter Jr. is a perfect ally to Nuggets’ star center Nikola Jokic. Porter Jr. is an uber-efficient scorer who plays within the flow of the offense. He moves well without the ball and his size (6-foot-10-inches) allows him to shoot over smaller wings and gives Jokic a massive target for entry passes and lobs.

Defensively, Porter Jr. is still a work in progress. But in his seven seeding games, he showcased a tremendous knack for rebounding the ball, good timing when going for blocks and a capability to stay in front of opposing ball-handlers.

To say Denver’s future is bright would be an understatement—it is blinding. Jokic (25) continues to establish himself as one of the most incomparable centers of all-time. Jamal Murray (22) has increased his scoring and assist averages every season since entering the league.

Jerami Grant (26) looks to be entering the prime of his career at the perfect time. PJ Dozier (23) averaged 10.3 points, 4.3 assists and shot 48 percent from three during the Nuggets’ seeding games after averaging just 3.7 points and 1.4 assists before the NBA shutdown. And the enigma that is Bol Bol (20) had spurts of greatness during his limited playing time, but needs more reps to fine-tune his game.

If this Porter Jr. is here to stay, the rest of the league should be petrified of the budding superstars in the Mile High City.