Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. (personal reasons) out vs. Timberwolves; F Danny Wolf available

The Brooklyn Nets have been dealing with some injuries this season, but those ailments have mostly affected some of their five rookies from the 2025 NBA Draft. Aside from forward Haywood Highsmith, Brooklyn has been able to rely on the fact that the veterans on the team have been able to play, but they will be playing their next game without one of their best players.

The Nets announced about two hours prior to Monday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves that forward Michael Porter Jr. was out for the matchup due to what the team described as personal reasons. Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez made sure to announce prior to his pregame press conference that Porter would be out for the game, but he did not elaborate on what those personal reasons are.

Porter, 27, is en route to his best season in the league since he was the 14th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Missouri. This season, Porter is averaging 20.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game while shooting 46.3% from the field and 33.3% from three-point land. To be clear, Porter has provided the scoring that the Nets have been expecting from him, but his efficiency numbers are down significantly from his career averages.

With Porter out of the lineup, that could present a chance for someone like Noah Clowney or Jalen Wilson to start at the power forward spot in his place. As of this writing, Fernandez has been tinkering with the lineup, but only at the point guard spot as he went with Tyrese Martin as the starting point guard in Sunday’s 129-105 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers after rookie Ben Saraf started the first five games of the season.

As it pertains to power forwards on the team, it should be noted that rookie forward Danny Wolf, who has yet to make his debut for Brooklyn this season due to an ankle sprain, is available to play against the Timberwolves. Rookie forward Drake Powell is unfortunately out as he’s dealing with his second bout of an ankle sprain of his own, but Nets fans will be excited to see Wolf potentially take the floor for the first time in the 2025-26 campaign.