The Denver Nuggets have been steamrolling through the Los Angeles Lakers in their ongoing playoff series. Nuggets Forward Michael Porter Jr had a lot to do with the recent defeat of the ‘Purple and Gold‘, as the 25-year-old has been raining down threes on the California side since the start of the playoffs. Porter’s ‘patent jumper’ seems to have caught the eye of one of his draft mates, Luka Doncic. The Slovenian seems to have taken a keen interest in MPJ’s jumper, as the Dallas guard was even seen emulating it in a few instances.
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Last November, Doncic made headlines, when a clip of him copying Porter’s jumper spread throughout the internet. While appearing on the popular hoop Podcast ” From The Point”, Porter even admitted to knowing about Doncic’s fascination with his shot, confessing to seeing the Instagram post about the same,
” I don’t know if Luka is trying to emulate my shot…but it looked like it though. Seen that. I think a couple of teammates send it to me.”
Backing the Denver star was the show’s host Trae Young. The Hawks guard seemed to agree with his host’s take on Doncic’s viral shot. The 6’2 guard even pointed out the same during their sitdown on his show, telling his NBA guest that Doncic was “definitely trying to imitate” his shot mechanics in the viral clip. While the duo were on the topic, Porter even mentioned reading the comments section under Luka’s viral video. MPJ admitted to being roasted in the comments of the viral video but taking the criticism in his stride, the Nuggets player joking added,
” I seen the comments and they were like ‘ Aw, if he emulate Michael Porter’s game he ain’t going to get no assists no more.’ ”
Well, Michael Porter Jr. might take the fan’s comments as a joke, but there is some truth to them. The Nuggets star has been a poor passer, a ‘ball hog’ of sorts. The numbers seem to even back up the fan’s claim, as through his six seasons with the Nuggets, Porter has averaged a minuscule 1.2 assists a game. A number that is concerning, even for an offense-oriented forward like MPJ. While Luka looks to learn from Porter’s shooting mechanics, the Denver star can take a page out of Doncic’s book and learn how to distribute the ball better.
Luka Donic always has trick shots up his sleeves
It takes a certain amount of physical dexterity and talent to pull off/emulate another player’s shot to perfection. Doncic is someone who has been gifted with such attributes, as he dazzles NBA fans on the regular with his trick shots. If you think mastering another player’s mechanics is ” bonkers”, the following examples of Luka’s pre-game antics will leave you scratching your head.
Doncic’s latest feat took place only a month prior when the Dallas Mavericks played the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. During warmups, Doncic attempted a trick shot off the Toyota Center’s video board, and he found nothing but net, leaving his teammates and the coaching staff on the court in shock.
The Slovenian national has been doing these kinds of stunts for some time now, “Half-court shots are a part of Doncic’s pregame routine… He makes half of them” claimed Mavericks trainer God Sham God during his interview with the Athletic. For a player of Doncic’s caliber, half-court shots are just warm-up drills, and what follows is the real “magic”.
Charlotte fans would get to witness a glimpse of this magic, when they hosted the Dallas Mavericks at home during their April 10th matchup. While Doncic and Dallas won the contest with ease [ending in a score of 130-104], the real fun took place before the game had even started. During the pre-game shoot-around, Doncic tried to get the crowd riled up by performing a trick shot from the three-point line. Launching the ball into the air from the left side of the court, Doncic miraculously made the shot with extreme precision, and the ball went straight through the hoop, resulting in the crowd going wild. Just another day for Doncic at the office.
