Michael Porter Jr “Pain Free” After Second Surgery

Denver Nuggets rookie Michael Porter Jr is hopeful that he will be fit to play when the NBA season starts.

The 14th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft is currently rehabbing from two surgeries on his back. Michael Porter Jr says that he is now pain free and is looking to the future.

Michael Porter Jr spoke to ESPN at the NBA’s annual rookie photoshoot:

“I finally feel, like, good,” he said.

“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 some different things. But my rehab has definitely been very conservative. They’re really taking it easy with me, being patient with me.”

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Porter had been projected as a high lottery pick but issues with his back meant he slipped to 14th. The bulging discs in his back meant he only made three appearances for Missouri in his one season there.

He had the first microdiscectomy in November 2017, but that didn’t entirely solve the problem. Porter went under the knife again in July, and a timeline for his return was not announced.

“[Doctors originally] only thought one of [the bulging disks] was symptomatic,” said Porter.

“They went in and fixed that one. Turns out that both were symptomatic. So my first surgery helped a lot but didn’t fix the entire problem. Now that they did this one, I’ve got no pain or anything. I’m excited.”

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The 6-foot-10 Porter has also been in the news due to controversy over Euroleague MVP Luka Doncic. He was seen to like an Instagram comment describing Doncic as overrated. Porter says it was accidental.

“I reached out to [Doncic], told him it was 100 percent accident and I told him, ‘I can’t wait to see what you do in the league.’ I wasn’t worried about what fans thought, but I wanted to let him know instantly. It was 100 percent accident.”