Don’t look now but Michael Porter Jr. is beginning to heat up.
The Denver Nuggets rookie scored a career-high 19 points on Sunday night during his first start of the season as head coach Michael Malone looked to shake up the lineup.
Porter finished by shooting 8-of-10 from the field while adding four rebounds and one assist in 26 minutes of work. He recorded 13 points alone in the first half.
The performance by Porter continued a strong run for the rookie.
On Saturday, Porter recorded 11 points in a win over the Memphis Grizzlies, just his second time scoring in double figures. He followed that performance up with a career night in a win on Sunday over the Sacramento Kings.
Malone has mentioned several times this season that it has been a challenge to find minutes for Porter given the team’s frontcourt depth. On Sunday, Malone told reporters that Porter is a big part of the future and wanted to give everyone a glimpse of his potential.
Players often talk about how helpful it is to play better when they receive consistent playing time and it appears as though Porter is beginning to take advantage of his newfound opportunity. After dealing with injury problems in the past, the risk the Nuggets took on Porter appears to be paying off.
The Nuggets play next on Tuesday against the Houston Rockets.
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