A quiet start to NBA's free agency just picked up some serious steam as Michael Porter Jr. was just traded to the Brooklyn Nets along with a 2032 Denver Nuggets first-round pick. The return for Denver is wing Cam Johnson.
BREAKING: The Denver Nuggets are trading Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cam Johnson, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/o6rdWhu3Rl
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2025
This deal makes a good amount of sense for both sides. The Nuggets offloaded a really rough contract in Porter and replaced him with a cheaper and better player. For Brooklyn, they acquired a first-round pick that can prove to be quite valuable down the road, especially if Nikola Jokic is no longer around by 2032.
but while the deal makes sense for both sides, it feels like there's still one clear winner.
Nuggets replace Michael Porter Jr. with cheaper and better player
Porter might be the bigger name in this deal, but there's no disputing who the better player is. Johnson provides a lot more value on both ends, and will do so while making significantly less money.
Johnson is coming off arguably the best season of his career thus far, which saw him average 18.8 points per game on 47.5/39.0/89.3 splits to go along with 4.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists. He played a bigger role offensively than he had previously been accustomed to on a bad Nets team, but was still incredibly efficient as a scorer both from inside and outside. It wouldn't be surprising to see hs efficiency reach new heights in Denver. He should provide valuable spacing around Nikola Jokic and offer more value off the ball and also as a defender than Porter ever did.
Instead of giving Porter $78 million over the next two seasons, the Nuggets will be paying Johnson $44 million. With Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon all on lucrative extensions, the only way for the Nuggets to improve their roster around their stars was by trading Porter. Getting a better fit who happens to be substantially cheaper is a win.
Nets get premium asset for Cam Johnson
The Nets didn't do this deal for Porter, they did it for the 2032 Nuggets first-round pick, which could prove to be an extremely valuable asset. 2032 is a ways away, but who knows what this Nuggets team will look like then with a 36-year-old Jokic and who knows what around him? Are we even sure Jokic will be in the league by then?
There's a good chance that this pick will end up being a very valuable one for a Nets team that (hopefully) has already turned things around by then. This will either give Brooklyn a premium asset to trade down the line or a golden opportunity to land a good prospect. Either way, this is a pick that should come in handy for Brooklyn, especially with it being unprotected.
Porter's contract isn't good, and his game does leave a lot to be desired, but he's still only 27 years old and there's no denying his scoring ability. Last season, he averaged 18.2 points per game on 50.4/39.5/76.8 splits. He, too, is an efficient scorer who can help space the floor and should put up numbers.
It'll be a bit of a clunky fit, assuming the Nets re-sign Cam Thomas, another player who does little other than score, but given Brooklyn just drafted a slew of pass-first players, getting another scorer who can space the floor is a good thing.
Given his talent, it wouldn't be surprising to see Porter have a good season in Brooklyn and become more valuable when his contract becomes an expiring next season, giving the team another trade piece. Either way, again, the Nets did this primarily for the draft pick.
Michael Porter Jr.-Cam Johnson trade verdict
This feels mostly like a win-win deal at the end of the day. The Nuggets improved their roster right now and improved their flexibility by adding a much cheaper player. The Nets added a very intriguing draft pick and Porter arguably has a higher ceiling as well.
Ultimately, this deal will come down to what the Nuggets look like in 2032 and/or what the Nets do with that pick. There's no debating Denver comes out better now, but if the Nets can use that pick to trade for a superstar or draft a blue-chip prospect,
As of right now, though, there's no way to truly know how Denver will look in seven years. Given that and how much better the Nuggets are in the short term, they win this deal by a relatively small margin.