Jan. 29, 2026, 9:14 p.m. ET

Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. has had an interesting 2025-26 season as he was able to experience plenty of firsts in his career, such as being the best player on an NBA team. Brooklyn brought Porter in via trade this past offseason and not only has Porter thrived as the primary scoring option, but he also seems likely to be an All-Star reserve.

The four writers that encompass the staff for the NBA’s website, Steve Aschburner, Brian Martin, Shaun Powell, and John Schuhmann, made their picks for the players that should make up the All-Star reserves for the Eastern Conference. Porter was picked to be an All-Star by three of the four writers with Aschburner potentially choosing Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey over Porter.

Martin, Powell, and Schuhmann each picked Porter, making him one of two players to be picked by three of the four writers with the other player being Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren. While the head coaches in the Eastern Conference will make the selections for the reserves on the All-Star team, the aforementioned four writers could give a glimpse into what the selection process will be like for the coaches.

“My final pick came down to a handful of players who either play for struggling teams, have missed significant time due to injury, or both,” Martin wrote in his entry. “Porter Jr. ultimately got the nod over Josh Giddey (who is nearly averaging 19-9-9 but has been out since Dec. 29), Pascal Siakam (who is putting up solid numbers for the last-place Pacers) and Franz Wagner (who was on an All-Star pace before missing nearly six weeks).”

Porter, 27, is having the best season of his career as he’s averaging 25.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 48.3% from the field and 39.5% from three-point land. Porter, who received the ninth-most All-Star votes in the entire Eastern Conference, will have to wait until Feb. 1 (6 p.m. ET on NBC & Peacock) to see if he is officially an All-Star reserve, but it seems like the odds are in his favor at this time.

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