Calvin Booth has clear message about past MPJ trade rumors

DENVER — The Denver Nuggets never got close to breaking up their Core Four ahead of Thursday’s NBA Trade Deadline, per the man in charge Calvin Booth.

The team’s general manager spoke with the media after a busy week of deals around the league. Despite some pretty big rumors involving the Nuggets, Denver wasn’t going to break up their championship core. The only possible options to even trade a star were Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr.—nobody in the right mind thought the three-time MVP would be on the move even in a post-Luka Doncic trade world.

Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon aren’t eligible to be traded this season even if the Nuggets wanted them out because each just signed contract extensions on the eve of the season. Thanks to the league’s trade rules, and Michael Malone’s big hint a few days ago, it was pretty much known that the Nuggets wouldn’t be sending out or acquiring a big-name player. But that’s the reason why Porter’s name has been in some rumors to begin with and it could’ve netted the Nuggets back a former All-Star. Booth shuts down the notion that Porter was ever seriously in trade talks.

“Well, I think a big move in my mind is like adding a significant depth piece,” the executive said. “I don’t think we were… I think we liked everything that was happening in our rotation. So I don’t think anything we were close to doing anything with anybody in a rotation. It was going to be some of the guys are outside like Dario (Saric) and Zeke (Nnaji) and using our draft assets.”

The two players Booth mentioned were the easiest for the Nuggets to trade but they didn’t have much value because they were struggling to even play for the Nuggets.

Calvin Booth shuts down the notion that the Nuggets were ever even close to an MPJ trade. pic.twitter.com/meAKxIlZFp

— Jake Shapiro (@Shapalicious) February 7, 2025

Meanwhile, Porter is playing out of his mind with back-to-back 35-plus point performances this week including a tied-for-career-high 39 points on Wednesday. MPJ is one of just a handful of guys in the league who have started every single game for their team this season. The Nuggets only have one other player who has gotten action in every game, Julian Strawther. MPJ played 81 games last season, only missing a contest because he didn’t have the right shoes to support his back. This hints at just how special MPJ’s Iron Man turn is, because he missed basically two of his first four seasons and his whole college career with back injuries. His six-year time with the Nuggets has turned into a roaring success with not only a title to claim but him adapting into a highly productive tertiary option.

Not only is Porter playing, but doing so well. He’s averaging 18.7 points, 654 rebounds and a career-high 2.2 assists a night all while shooting 51.9% from the field and 41.2% from deep—which is top 40 in the league. Porter is just one of eight players in the league who have played more than 30 games this season while shooting that well on so much volume, snagging at least 4.5 defensive rebounds a game and getting a block every other game, too. The only player younger on the list is Anthony Edwards and it features Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant and LeBron James.

If a big move does come to shake the Nuggets core, it’ll be in the offseason, though it seems like Porter is very much in the franchise’s good graces—maybe even putting a target on Murray or Gordon if things go awry this spring. Though it might not be Booth, making that call, as his contract is up at season’s end and there hasn’t been an extension yet.