Michael Porter

Porter is talented, but health issues have plagued him throughout his career. It's the reason why he fell to the 14th pick in the 2018 Draft. When he was mostly healthy, he stood out by averaging 19.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.8 three-pointers during the 2020-21 season. He even shot 54.2 percent from the field and 79.1 percent from the free-throw line, making him a valuable option in fantasy. However, Porter's back issues cropped up against last season, and ultimately resulted in him needing surgery after appearing in just nine games. With a full offseason to recover, the expectation is that Porter will be ready at the start of the season. If there is a list of high risk, high reward players, he should be near, or at, the top of it. It wouldn't be a surprise to see the Nuggets take a cautious approach with him as the season moves along, including resting him for one half of back-to-back sets. If he can stay healthy, he should slot right back in as the third-best scoring option behind Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

Despite continued concerns about Porter's injury history -- specifically, his surgically repaired back -- he stayed mostly healthy last season and appeared in 61 of 72 regular-season games for the Nuggets. In a breakout campaign, the forward averaged 19.0 points on 54/45/79 shooting, 7.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.6 combined blocks-plus-steals. His impressive efficiency led to him posting the league's seventh-highest true-shooting percentage (66.3%). He had six 30-point games and 15 double-doubles. Overall, the man they call "MPJ" ranked 43rd in fantasy on a per-game basis. Heading into 2021-22, the 23-year-old is in position to improve his numbers across the board. Jamal Murray (knee) could be out for the majority of the regular season, which means Porter will be the clear No. 2 option behind Nikola Jokic. With Murray off the court last season, Porter averaged 24.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 blocks, plus 3.4 made threes per 36 minutes. If he's able to replicate those numbers, he'll easily be worth a third-round selection. However, fantasy managers need to keep in mind his injury potential. His medicals were reportedly some of the worst that teams had ever seen coming into the 2018 Draft, which is what caused him to slip to the 14th pick.

Porter made his much-anticipated NBA debut last season after missing all of 2018-19 due to a back injury. His overall stats were modest -- 9.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in 16.4 minutes -- but Porter's upside showed through when he was given extended run. In the nine games (regular season and playoffs) that he saw 30-plus minutes, the forward averaged 23.1 points (55/51/94 shooting splits), 9.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.7 combined blocks-plus-steals. Heading into 2020-21, he's expected to start at forward for the Nuggets after both Jerami Grant and Mason Plumlee left in free agency. Porter's defensive deficiencies are noteworthy, but coach Michael Malone doesn't have the same personnel available to keep him on the bench when he's struggling on that side of the ball. Plus, Porter's offensive potential is enormous. Fantasy managers need to keep in mind Porter's injury history dating back to high school, but he could be in store for a breakout sophomore campaign.

Porter is one of the more interesting prospects heading into the 2019-20 season, as the former USA Today High School Player of the Year in 2017 has played limited amounts of competitive basketball over the last two years due to a lingering back injury. After being cleared to participate in summer league, the Nuggets ultimately held Porter out due to a minor knee injury. Before arriving at Missouri, the 6-foot-10 Porter showed he had the physical tools and scoring ability that NBA teams desire in a modern wing, but his inability to take the floor in a healthy manner since has left the prospect as a big mystery for the league. The emergence of Torrey Craig and Malik Beasley as legitimate contributors for the Nuggets last season afforded them some time with Porter, and assuming the development of Craig and Beasley continues to head in a positive direction, Denver will likely be careful with the 21-year-old this year. Still, given Porter's pre-NBA accolades, it wouldn't be surprising if he finds himself in a legitimate rotation role with the Nuggets, able to play both forward spots and shooting guard. We know what Porter's floor is, but if he can reach a realistic ceiling of 25 minutes per game, he should hold fantasy relevance.

Porter, USA Today’s High School Player of the Year in 2017, was No. 1 on many team’s draft boards before the 2017-18 season. However, before even playing a game for Mizzou, Porter suffered a back injury, which required surgery to repair a bulging disc. The nature of back injuries combined with the fact that he appeared in just three college games scared NBA teams off, and Denver was able to draft Porter 14th overall. At 6-foot-10 with a smooth shooting stroke, it’s easy to understand why the Nuggets would be willing to take a gamble on Porter’s upside given their draft position. Things have gotten off to a less-than-ideal start, as Porter underwent another back surgery in mid-July. Still, according to a mid-August interview by Porter, "I don't have a date but I'm hoping to be back for the beginning of the year. Gotta heal up, but I feel great. I'm able to get on the court a little bit right now, do something different things. But my rehab has definitely been very conservative. They're really taking it easy with me, being patient with me." Fantasy owners who are optimistic about Porter’s health have a case to take him in the later rounds of a draft, as the team got thinner at the rookie’s position(s) over the summer, mainly due to the departure of Wilson Chandler. More conservative Fantasy owners also have a case to stay away and let someone else take the risk, as many NBA teams did on draft night.