NBA Season Preview 2019-20: Every team’s biggest question

Denver Nuggets: What can Michael Porter Jr. bring to the table?

The Denver Nuggets are running it back. They enter the 2018-19 season returning the entire core of a roster that won 54 games and the Western Conference’s second seed just a year ago. This time, they hope to end their year on a higher note than last season’s disappointing second-round defeat at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Nuggets’ consistency will prove to be a virtue in a Western Conference adapting to widespread change, but that doesn’t mean they’re standing pat. They’re going to explore ways to improve around the margins of the formula that was so successful for them last season. Oklahoma City import Jerami Grant is a start, and growth from youngsters like budding star Jamal Murray or scoring guard Malik Beasley will help. But perhaps most importantly, they’ll return a missing piece from last year’s roster: 2018 first-round pick Michael Porter Jr.

Basketball fans are likely well-versed in Porter’s story at this point. Once ticketed as a potential top overall pick in the NBA Draft, Porter suffered a lower back injury in his first game with the Missouri Tigers, missing the entire season save for the team’s two NCAA Tournament games. In this league, back issues like Porter’s are no joke. He’s already had two surgeries the past two years, and it raises serious concerns about his durability and explosiveness on an NBA court. Porter tumbled down the lottery, landing in Denver’s lap at pick No. 14.

For a late-lottery pick, this was a worthwhile gamble for Denver. Porter’s upside is obvious: He’s the kind of tall, lanky scoring wing with shooting range that teams can’t get enough of. For all their depth, the Nuggets are relatively thin on the wings, with only Grant and the undersized Will Barton. If Porter can stay on the court and produce in his redshirt rookie season, the potent Nuggets offense could become all the more dangerous.