NBA Rumors: Michael Porter Jr.'s Agent Claims Young Star Could Return In March

The Denver Nuggets need all the help that they can get to remain a threat in the Western Conference, and they could be getting Michael Porter Jr. back sooner than expected.

According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Porter’s agent Mark Bartelstein reported to him that the Columbia, Missouri native is expected to be cleared for full-contact practice sometime this week, which puts his return to sometime in March.

Back in November 2021, The Athletic’s Shams Charania disclosed that Porter was expected to miss the rest of the season as he underwent surgery for his ailing back.

Prior to Charania’s announcement, NBA fans had noticed that something was wrong with Porter as his shooting numbers took a massive dive, while it clearly looked like something was bothering him whenever he took the court.

In past weeks, fans have been noticing that both Jamal Murray and Porter have looked particularly well during shootarounds ahead of the Nuggets’ games.

Porter failed to crack 20 points in the nine games that he played in to start the year and his back problem flaring up again this season right after signing a massive five-year, $125 million extension in the offseason was a major cause for concern among Nuggets fans.

The 23-year-old’s recurring back issues have been a major obstacle throughout his career and it caused him to fall from a top-five lottery pick to the 14th spot in the 2018 NBA draft, which featured the likes of Deandre Ayton, Luka Doncic and Trae Young.

Having his third back procedure in five years (first in 2017 and second in 2018) is something that should be taken into account as it may affect his playstyle for the rest of his career.

The young forward had averaged 9.9 points on 35.9 field goal percentage (20.8 percent from three), 6.6 rebounds, and 1.1 steals in nine appearances, his last being on November 6 against the Houston Rockets.

The Nuggets have done well to remain as playoff contenders this season despite not having Murray and Porter for most of the year, thanks to Nikola Jokic’s MVP-caliber of play which has made him into a frontrunner to win the award in back-to-back years.

Seeing Porter take the court in March will surely alleviate some of the weight that Jokic has been carrying as they make a run in the postseason.