MPJ Discusses Why He's Had a Breakout Season Away From the Nuggets

Michael Porter Jr. is already an NBA champion. While he reached the mountain top more as a star role player, his talent was never in doubt. Still, the Nuggets were willing to let him (and a first-round pick) go in order to grab Cam Johnson, someone they perceived as a better fit for their team.

Since being traded, MPJ has had a career year. In Denver, his best season had him averaging 19 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game. This season, he is averaging 25.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game.

After a recent game against his old team, MPJ explained why things are different on the Nets this season than when he played with the Nuggets. 

"I think whenever you have a team that talented, a championship-caliber team, there's going to be guys that sacrifice. Some of the shots and some of the ways they probably could have used me—we had enough good players to where we could create a good shot in a different way. I didn't need to come off of a screen and be high usage in that way and shoot some of the tough shots that I'm shooting here, which I can make, but over there those may not be considered the most highest percentage compared to what we could get. So, that's with every good team. 

But it is good to be able to kind of show what I'm capable of and kind of get some of the recognition. It's tough as a player when you know what you can do, and you are asked to do something different, and then people criticize you for it. That can be tough. But it's part of the NBA, it's part of being adaptable, and it's part of being on a really good team for a lot of years. You just got to accept your role and do what the coach asks in whatever situation you're in."

MPJ may have been scoring at this level in Denver had he been given a longer leash. However, that wouldn’t have necessarily been good for the team as a whole. When you are competing for NBA championships, great players sometimes need to take a step back for the greater good of the team. That’s what MPJ did in Denver.