For the Nuggets mentor, both sides simply won the deal with Porter Jr. thriving in Brooklyn, while Denver inked several solid contributors last year.
David Adelman is fully convinced that both the Denver Nuggets and the Brooklyn Nets have won the Michael Porter Jr. trade from last summer.
In his media address before the Nuggets' 127-115 loss against the Nets on Sunday, Adelman acknowledged the current rise of Porter Jr. in Brooklyn and the significant winning benefit that Denver has gained this season since the deal took place.
"He’s got a lot of freedom here, and I think this trade was good for everybody," the Nuggets mentor claimed, via Erik Slater of ClutchPoints. "He won a championship with us, he’s one of the main reasons we did it. I woke up today, we talked about their team, and the first thing I thought of was Game 5 [of the 2023 NBA Finals] and we won it."
Adelman noted: “I thought we used him the right way. I’m sure he would disagree with me completely, which is ok. But we won a lot of games doing it that way. It’s cool to see him have more freedom under Jordi."
The Nuggets notably transferred Porter Jr. and a 2032 first-round asset to the Nets for Cam Johnson.
This move eventually allowed Porter Jr. to finally reach his All-Star potential. Leading the young and promising Brooklyn team, he is currently averaging a career high 25.9 points, 7.6 boards and 3.4 assists.
On the other hand, Porter Jr.'s departure allowed the Nuggets to be more financially flexible, allowing them to land several huge acquisitions in the previous offseason from Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jonas Valanciunas. The Porter Jr. deal also allowed them to re-sign Christian Braun to a five-year, $125 million contract extension.
These units allowed the Nuggets to secure a current top-three seeding in the West with a 23-12 record.
In hindsight, both parties indeed won the trade. The Nuggets became even more formidable as a championship heavyweight, while the Nets have earned a new franchise star and a key asset they can use in the future.
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