The Nuggets lost their third straight game on Sunday, losing this time at home to the Nets (122-120). After Chicago and San Antonio, Mike Malone’s men concede a third defeat in a row, once again, against an opponent well within their reach. Moreover at home where it is always difficult for the opponents to evolve because of the altitude.
During this meeting, Mike Malone made the choice to dispense with Michael Porter Jr. in the 4th quarter while the latter had a good offensive match with 23 points at 9/12 shooting including 3/5 at 3-pointers in 23 minutes.
“He had a very good first half, especially in scoring, but everyone played badly in the third quarter” justified the coach. “It wasn’t just Michael, everyone is in trouble when you lose a quarter 37-18. The group that was on the floor in the fourth quarter played well. So I trusted this group..
“How was I in trouble? I fired three times and then I didn’t play anymore!
After the meeting, the main concerned did not hide his frustration with his coach. He was thus benched with a little less than five minutes left in the 3rd quarter and only returned to the floor just 23.1 seconds from the end of the 4th quarter.
“What do you mean, I was in trouble? I shot three times and then I didn’t play anymore” indirectly retorts the winger. “I didn’t play in the fourth quarter, so I wouldn’t say I struggled. I fired three times. I made two of the three shots. I missed a shot, so I wasn’t in trouble. I would just say that I did not play” got annoyed Michael Porter Jr.
Angry, Michael Porter Jr. would like another explanation: “ He left me on the bench for the whole 4th quarter and brought me in with 20 seconds left, I think. It is impossible to find rhythm at this time. I’m still trying to figure it out myself. I’m not the coach, but I’m still trying to figure it out…”
No doubt we should rather look at the defensive plan to understand this choice…
| Michael Porter, Jr. | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2019-20 | DEN | 55 | 16 | 50.9 | 42.2 | 83.3 | 1.2 | 3.5 | 4.7 | 0.8 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 9.3 |
| 2020-21 | DEN | 61 | 31 | 54.2 | 44.5 | 79.1 | 1.5 | 5.8 | 7.3 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 0.9 | 19.1 |
| 2021-22 | DEN | 9 | 30 | 35.9 | 20.8 | 55.6 | 1.0 | 5.6 | 6.6 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 9.9 |
| 2022-23 | DEN | 50 | 29 | 48.6 | 40.9 | 80.4 | 0.9 | 4.4 | 5.4 | 1.0 | 2.1 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 17.0 |
| Total | 175 | 26 | 50.7 | 41.5 | 79.8 | 1.2 | 4.7 | 5.9 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 14.9 | |
