Michael Porter Jr. was a name that kept surfacing in trade chatter last season, but one of the teams linked to him apparently wasn’t eager to get involved.
According to Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo! Sports, Golden State was not in the market for Porter in February.
“Michael Porter Jr.? Sources say that Steve Kerr didn't want MPJ in February, and there is little reason to believe he would want him now,” O'Connor wrote while discussing the Warriors.
His report came in an article centered on the NBA still waiting for LeBron James’ free-agent decision, with Golden State mentioned as one of the possible destinations James could consider.
The Warriors were rumored to have interest in Porter, but they also reportedly were not willing to pay a steep price to push for another playoff run. Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports reported that Brooklyn wanted two first-round picks in a Porter deal, while Golden State was also looking at other options such as New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III.
Porter, 28, is coming off the best season of his career. He averaged 24.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game while shooting 46.3% from the field and 36.3% from three-point range.
For now, Porter remains under contract for next season and is still with the Nets, who appear intent on keeping him in Brooklyn. Porter and general manager Sean Marks seem positioned to keep the partnership going rather than break it up, but if that changes, the latest reporting suggests Golden State may already be out of the picture.
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