Nuggets Trade Pitch Swaps Michael Porter Jr. for 2-time All-Star

Porter is coming off a brutal playoff series in the Nuggets’ seven-game loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

On the other hand, LaVine has had to deal with injuries while his relationship with the Chicago Bulls management and coaching staff deteriorated last season.

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Zach LaVine can shake up the Nuggets’ offense

Buckley sees LaVine’s All-Star caliber firepower as a major asset to the Nuggets’ goal of returning to the Finals after last season’s debacle and loss. Kentavious Caldwell-Papetheir second-best 3-point shooter and best perimeter defender, to the Orlando Magic in free agency.

“This could be the kind of boost Denver needs to keep pace with an ever-improving Western Conference,” Buckley wrote.

LaVine could ease the offensive burden on three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and star point guard Jamal Murray as a shot creator and shooter. After all, LaVine on average 25.5 points, 4.5 assists and 3.0 three-pointers on a shooting ratio of 48/39/84.

“An offense with Jokić, LaVine and Jamal Murray could be unstoppable,” Buckley wrote.

Buckley also views LaVine as a viable guard partner for Russell Westbrook on the Nugget’s second unit, with his outside firepower complementing the point guard’s frantic attacks.

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His brother’s legal troubles distracted Michael Porter Jr.

While Porter doesn’t want his personal issues to be an excuse for his poor playoff performance, he admitted it was in the back of his mind.

“I’m not going to sit here and pretend like it’s not a burden and I don’t think about it all day, every day.” Porter told reporters after their Game 7 loss to the Timberwolves“But that’s not an excuse. I’m a better player than I was in this series. I’m a better shooter than I was in this series. In the NBA, you have to be able to differentiate between what’s happening off the court and what’s happening on the court.”

Two of the Nuggets star’s brothers have been involved in scandals.

Jontay Porter was banned from NBA for gambling violations And pleaded guilty to wire fraud and Coban Porter was sentenced to six years in prison for the death of a 42-year-old woman in a car accident while under the influence of alcohol last year.

Porter was hard on himself, taking most of the blame for the Nuggets’ failure to defend their NBA title.

“There’s a lot of things we could have done differently as a team,” Porter said after the Nuggets were eliminated from the playoffs. “But I know if I would have played my role, we would have won that series. And I have to live with that.”

His performance in their second-round loss and first-round win against the Los Angeles Lakers was night and day.

After punishing the Lakers with 22.8 points and 8.4 rebounds in the first round, Porter Jr. was unable to repeat his feat against the Timberwolves’ stifling defense, which limited him to just 11.3 points and 5.4 rebounds.