Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. had the best season of his career this year as he found himself in a bigger role for a rebuilding Nets team. Brooklyn made an interesting move to trade for Porter last offseason with the goal of making him the main offensive weapon, but since he was able to thrive in that role, some of his fellow players took notice.
Porter was one of the players that received votes for most underrated player this season, according to a recent survey from Josh Robbins, Sam Amick, and Joe Vardon of The Athletic. To be clear, Porter was one of the players that received 0.7% of the vote from 151 players that cast a vote for the survey and it seems that players around the NBA are willing to acknowledge others as 89 players received at least one vote.
Porter, 27, is coming off a 2025-26 season in 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 behind the three-point line. Aside from his shooting percentages from the field and behind the three-point line, Porter achieved career-highs in virtually every statistical category to show that he was ready for that kind of responsibility.
While Porter did not make his first All-Star Game as many around the league expected given his level of play, it’s important to note that he received 536,683 votes for the event. Due to the nature of the All-Star Game reserves being decided by the head coaches in the conference, Porter ended up missing out on the All-Star nomination, but that doesn’t mean that others didn’t see what he did on the floor.
Ultimately, the players who participated in the survey felt that Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson and Boston Celtics guard Derrick White were the most underrated players as each of them received the biggest percentage of votes (4.0%). Porter will likely be back in Brooklyn next season given his desire to remain with the franchise throughout the rebuild and based on this survey, it looks like he could be set up for another huge season.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. receives votes for most underrated NBA player
Reporting by Sharif Phillips-Keaton, Nets Wire / Nets Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
