NEW YORK (AP) — The Brooklyn Nets are trading Cam Johnson to the Denver Nuggets for Michael Porter Jr. and a first-round draft pick, a person with knowledge of the details said Monday.
The swap of forwards shortly after free agency opened sends Johnson back to the Western Conference, where he helped Phoenix reach the 2021 NBA Finals, two years before Porter helped the Nuggets win the title.
The Nets will receive the Nuggets' 2032 first-round pick in the deal, which the person confirmed to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because there was no official announcement. It was first reported by ESPN.
Johnson averaged a career-high 18.8 points in 57 games last season. The Nets acquired him when they sent Kevin Durant to the Suns at the 2023 trade deadline and there was speculation throughout the season he could be dealt to a contender by a Brooklyn team that is rebuilding.
The Nets had already dealt away Mikal Bridges, Johnson's close friend who came with him in the Durant deal, to the Knicks last summer in a trade that netted them five first-round picks.
Now they get another one along with Porter, who averaged 18.2 points in 77 games, all starts, last season. But he injured his shoulder in a scramble for a loose ball in the first round of the playoffs and struggled with his shot in Denver's seven-game loss to eventual champion Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semifinals.
Porter slid to Denver at No. 14 in the 2018 NBA draft due to a back ailment that derailed his college career at Missouri. He sat out his first season in Denver after undergoing a back procedure in July 2018.
He has averaged 16.2 points in his six NBA seasons and signed a five-year maximum extension with the Nuggets in 2021. Now it's a chance at a fresh start for Porter, whose two younger brothers have gone through legal trouble, with Porter saying last season he relied on his teammates to make sure he stays strong.
Former Toronto Raptors reserve Jontay Porter was banned by the NBA after an investigation found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors and bet on games in violation of league rules. Coban Porter, a former guard at the University of Denver, was sentenced in April 2024 to six years in prison for killing a 42-year-old woman in a drunken-driving crash.
AP Sports Writer Pat Graham in Denver contributed to this report.
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Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson is introduced before a preseason NBA basketball game against the Toronto Raptors, Oct. 18, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa, File)
FILE - Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. (1) in the first half of Game 6 in the Western Conference semifinals of the NBA basketball playoffs, May 15, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
A Ukrainian drone attack in southwestern Russia killed two people and parts of Ukraine went without power following Russian assaults on energy infrastructure, authorities said Saturday, as U.S.-led peace talks were about to restart on Sunday.
Foreign policy advisers from the U.S., Ukraine and Germany, among others, will meet in Berlin, German news agency dpa reported. Germany is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday, part of efforts by European leaders to steer the negotiations.
For months, American officials have tried to navigate the demands of each side as U.S. President Donald Trump presses for a swift end to Russia’s war and grows increasingly exasperated by delays. The search for possible compromises has run into major obstacles, including the possession of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, mostly occupied by Russia but parts of which remain under Ukrainian control.
The drone attack in Russia's Saratov region damaged a residential building and several windows were also blown out at a kindergarten and clinic, said Gov. Roman Busargin. Russia’s Defense Ministry said it had shot down 41 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory overnight.
In Ukraine, Russia launched overnight drone and missile strikes on five Ukrainian regions, targeting energy and port infrastructure. Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said that over a million people were without electricity.
Zelenskyy said Russia had sent over 450 drones and 30 missiles into Ukraine overnight.
An attack on the Black Sea city of Odesa caused grain silos to catch fire at the port, Ukrainian deputy prime minister and reconstruction minister Oleksiy Kuleba said. Two people were wounded in attacks on the wider Odesa region, according to regional head Oleh Kiper.
Kyiv and its Western allies say Russia is trying to cripple the Ukrainian power grid and deny civilians access to heat, light and running water for a fourth consecutive winter, in what Ukrainian officials call “weaponizing” the cold.
On the front lines, Ukrainian forces said Saturday that the northern part of the critical city of Pokrovsk was under Ukrainian control, despite Russia's claims earlier this month that it had taken full control of the city. The Associated Press was not able to independently verify the claims.
The latest round of attacks came after Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said Friday that Russian police and national guard will stay on in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas and oversee the industry-rich region, even if a peace settlement ends the war. It underscores Moscow’s ambition to maintain its presence in Donbas postwar. Ukraine is likely to reject such a stance as U.S.-led negotiations drag on.
Moscow will give its blessing to a ceasefire only after Ukraine’s forces have withdrawn from the front line, Ushakov said in comments published in Russian business daily Kommersant.
Ukraine has consistently refused to cede the region to Russia, especially as parts remain under its control.
In other developments, around 480 people were evacuated Saturday from a train traveling between the Polish city of Przemysl and Kyiv after police received a call concerning a threat on the train, Karolina Kowalik, a spokesperson for the Przemysl police, told The Associated Press. Nobody was hurt and she didn't elaborate on the threat.
Polish authorities are on high alert since multiple attempts to disrupt trains on the line linking Warsaw to the Ukrainian border, including the use of explosives in November, with Polish authorities saying they have evidence Russia was behind it.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits attend drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits rest after drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits rest after drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits attend drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this grab from a video provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Friday, Dec 12, 2025, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy records a video at the road entering of Kupiansk, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
