What could the Nets do as they assess Michael Porter Jr.'s extension?

Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. likely has his mind focused on being the best version of himself heading into a 2026-27 NBA season where he'll be sharing the floor with forward Julius Randle. Before Porter takes the floor with Brooklyn next season, he is eligible to sign a contract extension with the franchise and there is one way that the Nets can go about his extension. "Michael Porter Jr. is another player to keep tabs on for an extension. The Brooklyn Nets have used up most of their cap space, but they could give what remains (roughly $4.9 million) to Porter to up his salary to $45.7 million for this season in a renegotiation-and-extension," Keith Smith wrote on Porter for Spotrac. Porter could extend for four years and $234 million, but many are wondering how much it will cost Brooklyn to keep Porter in town. "After this year the Nets could take Porter’s salary down by as much as 40% in the first-year of an extension. That’s not necessarily expected to be the path Brooklyn and Porter take, but it is something to be aware of," Smith continued. As Smith alludes to, the Nets could find a way to be creative in their extension talks with Porter, especially if he's willing to extend in a way that allows both sides to get what they want. Porter, 28, is coming off the best season of his career as he averaged 24.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game while shooting 46.3% from the field and 36.3% from behind the three-point line. As Brian Lewis of the New York Post wrote earlier this week, if the Nets are going to trade Porter at some point next season, they had until Tuesday to extend/re-negotiate his contract. With there being no reports on Porter and the Nets coming to terms on an extension, it's safe to assume that both sides are still talking and Porter has until next offseason to sign an extension. Ultimately, the Nets are trying to maintain salary cap flexibility to some extent, but Porter is going to require a sizable amount to extend with them. Smith provided one potential framework of how the deal could get done. This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: What could the Nets do as they assess Michael Porter Jr.'s extension?