The Brooklyn Nets have one of the most interesting leading scorers in the league, and he’s been trending in an intriguing direction to begin the season. 

On Wednesday night, the Nets earned their second win of the young season against the Charlotte Hornets. Despite a slow start, the Nets don’t have to cover much ground to get right back into the thick of things in the middle of the Eastern Conference standings. 

Their path back into the East postseason race will hinge largely on the play of Michael Porter Jr. The Nets’ leading scorer a season ago and thus far in 2026-27, Porter has showcased that he can be effective in a larger role than the one he had in Denver. 

Although the wins haven’t exactly piled up for Porter in Brooklyn, he’s still shown some clear strides. Perhaps the most interesting stride he’s made early this season is his outside shooting volume and efficiency. 

Over the first eight games of the season, Porter has averaged a career-high 9.3 3-point attempts per game and is knocking them down at a 38.9% clip, which is 2.6% better than his mark from his first year with the Nets. Still a slight step down from his 40.6% mark from his six years in Denver, Porter’s outside shooting numbers are beginning to mirror his first few years while taking on the highest volume of his career. 

While his overall volume of shots has been higher with the Nets, his outside shooting volume is still the highest of his career when accounting for his overall shot diet. This season, Porter’s outside shots have accounted for 58.5% of his overall attempts, which marks a significant increase from his Denver average of 48.8%.

That 58.5% mark is a career-high, and it may showcase a shift in Porter’s game to some degree. While Porter has always been a talented shooter, he hasn’t always let that come primarily from the outside shot. 

Porter is still taking mid-range jumpers, but they’re coming at the lowest rate of his career. Two-point shots longer than 10 feet have accounted for a career-low 11.4% of Porter’s shots this season, a clear step down from last season’s mark of 17.8% and his previous career low of 14.8% in the 2024-25 season. Those are the looks have mostly been redistributed to beyond the arc, with his two-point shots within 10 feet taking up 30.1% of his shots this season, compared to 31.5% from a season ago. 

It’s still quite early in the season, and these numbers could certainly shift back toward Porter’s career up to this point, so this trend is something to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months.