David Adelman had his reasons for playing one Nuggets star despite his issues on the court.
The Denver Nuggets started their playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder quite well. Having stolen Game 1 on the road, the Nuggets felt they had an edge over the Thunder.
But those hopes of defeating the Thunder came crashing down last night as OKC dominated against the Nuggets, blowing them out by 43 points.
If the Nuggets keep playing like this, Aaron Gordon won’t fulfill his championship promise to Russell Westbrook.
But neither of those two was as bad as one Nuggets star in particular, who just couldn’t get it going against the Thunder. However, David Adelman made sure to keep him in the game despite the issues.
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David Adelman on playing Michael Porter Jr.
Throughout the playoffs, Michael Porter Jr. has struggled with a shoulder injury. This has caused him to play quite poorly, and last night was no exception.
However, David Adelman wanted him to play through his injuries, which is why he kept him on the court. When talking about his injury, the Nuggets’ head coach admitted the injury is affecting his shooting and rebounding.
But the decision to keep him on the court was simple. Adelman saw MPJ still make a few shots and explained, “That’s why I left him out there to see if he could find a rhythm.”
It didn’t work, as Porter Jr. would end the game with just 2 points, struggling to make shots from zones he would normally do well from.
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Michael Porter Jr. wants to help Nuggets win
Michael Porter Jr. himself spoke about why he chose to play for the Nuggets despite his injury concerns. MPJ claimed that the team is in a situation where they need to win games, and he wanted to help make it happen.
“I chose to play, but that’s not an excuse. It’s do or die for our team. So I don’t feel the pull to really try and rest it. I’m definitely going to go out there and try.”
However, the former NBA champion did explain that if there are other players on the team who are in better form, he is fine with them playing over him.
The Nuggets would be a lot better if Porter Jr. were in good form. But they now need to find a way to win without MPJ contributing at a high level.
