The source of Michael Porter Jr.’s anxiety and anguish was both inhibiting him and supporting him, but he only considered it one of those ways.
A brace he wears on his left leg is the byproduct of the three back surgeries that have hindered various junctures of his career. Porter hated it. Then he learned to live with it by writing about it.
“I used to be very upset and mad that I didn’t feel like I was playing out there the way I wanted to play. I always looked at that brace as a downfall,” the Nuggets sharpshooter told The Post. “Journaling made me thankful for it.”
As MPJ prepares to make his NBA Finals debut Thursday as a starter for the best team in the West, he’s reflected on the methods that galvanized his return from a chronic injury — first and foremost, a practice he calls “gratitude journaling.” Throughout the season, his father has noticed “a measure of peace” in Porter that was unfamiliar in recent years. The playoffs are proof. Porter enters the Finals vs. the Miami Heat averaging a steady 14.6 points and eight rebounds, while shooting the 3-pointer at a high volume (seven attempts per game) and rate (40.8%).
“I’ve seen a real change in Michael since he’s been doing this,” Michael Porter Sr. said. “He had a little bit of anxiety after signing the max deal. Wondering if he could live up to it.”
Especially while facing an obstacle as fundamental as staying healthy. Porter signed his five-year max extension with the Nuggets in September 2021, worth up to $207 million. That December, he underwent his third back surgery dating back to 2017, when he was a freshman at Missouri and the No. 1 prospect in the country.
Porter points to that third rehab process, leading up to the 2022-23 season, as the period when he started journaling consistently. It was part of his morning routine. The idea was to identify simple positives on a daily basis, even if it meant recontextualizing a burden as a benefit.
“Be self-reflective,” he said.
The brace was meant to benefit him all along, but Porter realizes now the fact that he wasn’t thinking about it as such was evidence of his head state during a time when he questioned his long-term basketball career.
“It’s allowed me to play after my surgeries, and be safe playing,” he told The Post. “So I think just switching that mindset and writing my thoughts down on a piece of paper about it helped switch my thinking from being upset about something to being grateful — even if it’s a hard circumstance. Trying to find the good in it. Putting those thoughts on paper helped.”
Porter Sr. noticed his son’s increased dedication to diet, rest and other regimens. He coached Porter Jr. at Missouri, so he had already seen up-close what the first recovery process looked like. This felt different. Even immediately after the third surgery in Dallas, Porter Sr. remembers his son feeling better physically and drawing more optimism from that. “I don’t know, if I had been in Mike’s shoes, if I would have been as resilient as he was,” Porter Sr. said.
Still, Porter Jr. was a dormant NBA player fresh off that max extension. An increase in pressure. A decrease in patience from Nuggets fans, who couldn’t see the 24-year-old’s progress off the court. Not playing was a source of stress. “It’s natural to think that way,” Porter Sr. said, “but it was counterproductive for him.”
Journaling helped change the small forward’s perspective. He focused more on the progress he was making, rather than the time he had lost. He also stayed away from social media more than he ever had — a sacrifice that he has tried to maintain this season. Porter Sr. believes his son has seen everything, from ego-boosting acclaim that comes with being a No. 1 prospect to harsh criticism about not being worth the money.
“He’s been praised a lot and he’s been attacked a lot,” Porter Sr. said, “especially surrounding that contract.”
Staying away from social media was an example set by Nikola Jokic. Porter Jr. is a disciple of Jokic’s habits — he noticed the two-time NBA MVP lifting after games and started doing the same, Porter Sr. said. Being around Jokic as a teammate and role model has helped the maturation process for MPJ, especially in-season when it became more difficult to keep a daily journal.
“I need to get back into it more,” he said. “Now I spend so much time on the court, wake up at different times, try to get as much rest as possible. But it should be a habit of mine regardless.”
He’s considering making a daily habit of it again during the NBA Finals.
“I should,” Porter Jr. said. “I probably will.”
