Join Chrysandra Brunson as she talks to NBA star Michael Porter Jr. about his extraordinary journey from a promising draft choice to a world champion with the Denver Nuggets. Michael opens up about the trials and triumphs he faced, both on and off the court, and how his faith in God has guided his path. Discover how a change in perspective and a commitment to his calling have become pivotal themes in his life.
Welcome, everyone, to The Calling’s radio show, To All the Dreamers. I’m your radio host, Chrysandra Brunson, founder and CEO of The Calling. And it is such an honor to be with all of you today. You know, at The Calling, we have realized that so many people are afraid to go after the dreams that Jesus has put inside each one of our hearts. Because they are afraid to fail. And that is just plain wrong. Because if God has given us a dream and we’re not living it out, we are wasting it. And we do not want to die with regret. That’s why at The Calling, we love to inspire, empower, and equip people to after God’s calling on their lives to reach the best kind of success. internal legacy having immediate impact on their lives and their families’ lives. We love to do this through global conferences, workshops, seminars, and especially through this radio show to all the dreamers. And we love bringing on world-renowned guests, sharing how they have gone after God’s calling on their lives to Today is no exception. We are so honored and humbled to have the one and only Michael Porter Jr. on with us. Michael, welcome to the show.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, thank you guys so much for having me. I appreciate it.
CHRYSANDRA :
We are so honored to have you. And Michael, so many people are like, okay, the name sounds familiar. I think I know, but just in case they may not, can you just share what your title, what roles you’re playing in humanity are right now?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, yeah, most people would know my name from obviously playing basketball. I’m out here in Denver playing for the Denver Nuggets. So it’s been good. I’ve been here the last four or five years. It’s been a journey, you know, but we won the championship last year. It’s been pretty hectic, a pretty hectic summer. But, yeah, I would say most people know me from basketball. And I’m kind of trying to change that. I’m trying to start my own podcast, talk about some things. But, yeah, at this point, I’d definitely say it’s about basketball.
CHRYSANDRA :
Well, basketball, and I love your podcast, Michael, and I think so many other people do too, called Curious Mike. Is that correct?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah.
CHRYSANDRA :
It’s awesome. And we’re going to tell everyone how they can find that more, but you guys just Google it. I’m curious, Mike, and you’ll be able to pull it up real quick. But Michael, you have just been the, you are an epitome of following God’s calling on your life fearlessly. And we are just so excited to just hear this journey and just know that it has not been easy. There’s, been so many giants along the way and different trials to overcome. Could you just bring us back to the beginning of your story when you were little, just how you can kind of see how God was dropping all these seeds in your heart to know that this was the dream he had for you.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, as a kid, I grew up in a big household. There was eight of us. You know, I was blessed to be really close with my siblings. My parents actually homeschooled all of us. And we started playing basketball at a super young age, around three or four. Yeah, at this time, I played multiple sports, though. I played football, baseball. And eventually I got pretty good at all of them, but my dad kind of told me if I want to be great at one thing, I was going to kind of have to focus in on one. So I chose basketball. And it was good. All throughout my childhood, got better and better and better. Going into high school, got better and better and better until I’m, you know, the best player in the country. Ranked number one in the country on all the ranking sites and things like that. Wow.
CHRYSANDRA :
You were number one, Michael, in all the country.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Just kind of felt it came kind of easy. It came kind of easy, you know. Basketball came easy to me all the way into high school when I started to, you know, have some problems, run into some problems with my back and things like that. And then that kind of escalated going into my senior year of high school and then into college. And then, you know… My first real roadblock was in college when I had to sit out the season after being, you know, projected the number one draft pick. And, you know, the college, as soon as I committed to the college, my home city of Mizzou, attendance skyrocketed. You know, season tickets sell out. Everyone’s so excited. And I got injured. So I got injured. I had my first surgery back then, and that was kind of my first roadblock. And it’s been a journey, this whole thing. I mean, I don’t know if you want me to get into specifics, but… Yes, tell us, Michael.
CHRYSANDRA :
We want to know.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, so that was the first kind of thing. And at this time, I’m just like… You know, I’m really obviously down because I’m wanting to, you know, represent my home city and things like that. But I deal with it. You know, everyone goes through injuries, and I had my first surgery. I kind of rushed back to come back and try to play, you know, rushed back faster than the doctors thought I should and kind of came back towards the end of the season and pretty much re-injured my back. I don’t think I gave myself enough time to heal emotionally, mentally, physically, and I ended up – You know, having to go into the draft, the pre-draft process, which, you know, you’re working on in front of all these teams and stuff. But I wasn’t 100 percent. So I was just I didn’t know where I was being taken. I was like, is God trying to take this thing away from me? Is he trying to redirect me? I had no idea because I was just in so much pain. Ended up having to get another surgery. And at this point, I’m just like in the dumps. Like, you know, no one really plays after two back surgeries being like 20, 21 years old. It’s crazy.
CHRYSANDRA :
I know. These are pretty severe surgeries. They are.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
they are they are pretty severe surgeries so that so that happened had my first um surgery uh or my first couple surgeries before i even got to the to the nba and then you know i’ve had a it’s been it’s been a process you know perseverance i think that’s kind of what you try to get it on this podcast like if god puts a dream in in you and you know he gives you talent or he gives you you know a vision for your life or whatever like he gives all of us specific gifts one of my gifts was basketball you know i was blessed to be tall athletic and things like that. And it was something I enjoyed. So that was a platform that I could use to influence. But I feel like sometimes on our journeys to use our purpose, we still need to develop as a person. So I feel like through these injuries that I’ve had, and I’ve had three back surgeries now, it was all to… develop me into a person that he can actually use instead of using basketball for like my own glory my own fame my own money and enjoyment i feel like through this process of through these injuries um he’s molded me into a different person you know that looks at the world different that looks at him different and i’m not perfect yet by any means but i genuinely can look back on those injuries and see the Like how he’s used them. I feel like in spot, like I never would have maybe not even been on this podcast or some of the people that I inspire. I hear so many stories that people wanted to give up on their dreams and things like that because of hurdles. And I’m able to inspire a whole different group of people that I wouldn’t have been able to inspire had I not gone through those injuries. You know what I mean?
CHRYSANDRA :
I think Michael, that you’re able to identify that is just, it’s awe inspiring to know it’s, you know, Jesus, he has, he wants to, he cares more about our character than the destination. And so, we say it pretty often, but he loves, he doesn’t like the highway. Usually he loves the scenic routes. He’s like, we’re going to go over here. And he could totally, it seems like Michael, this is for you of your journey. He’s like, I can get you there, Michael, like be split. And I do love you. You’re going to get there. But I care so much about you that we’re going to go through these different trials so that my character and my glory can be entrusted in you even more so. And you’ve been so obedient, Michael. You have.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Thank you. And I think another point is just the fact that God really only was using broken people in the Bible. He didn’t use people that had the most smooth path to success or the smooth route to their calling or their influence. Like it always was. Some crazy story. And a lot of times they’ll use the thorns in our sides or the things that we and he’ll just use them to keep our eyes on him. And so, like, I kind of realized that, like, man, like none of these people in the Bible had a perfect route to their calling. So it’s like whatever we go through, even if we don’t end up. in the lane that we thought we were our whole life like there there is a reason for that like you if you obviously we believe us who believe in jesus believes everything works out for the good so if you continue to trust in him i think he’ll bring you to to the place you’re supposed to be but that doesn’t mean you know he gives us desires in our hearts so that doesn’t mean you should Just if you go through some trials and some hard bumps in the road, give up on your on your goals and give up on your what’s your heart desires like he put that in you for a reason. You know what I mean? So I think that’s another point to make.
CHRYSANDRA :
Yeah, no, I love that. And this journey, Michael, for you. Okay, so your family did such a great job inspiring you guys. It seems like, you know, you were very gifted in a lot of different athletic abilities and teams and then to choose one direction. When you went into basketball, it seems like your dad was saying a lot of different coaching wisdom. What was he inspiring your heart with?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, well, basketball was always something I enjoyed. My mom and my dad both played. But, yeah, growing up, my dad was my trainer, and he also was just my biggest supporter, my biggest fan. Like, he was the one that told me I could be one of the best players in the world. He was the one that put the dream in me that made me believe in myself that I could reach the NBA and be, you know, a great player. And so I always just believed it, and I would just, you know, follow his instruction. And, you know, I think sometimes – parents you know put their dreams onto their kids but in our situation it was like now like if you don’t want to play basketball that’s not what you want to do there’s no pressure but if you do want to do it we’re going to work at it and we’re going to try to be the best because i think that’s um a godly characteristic i mean whatever whatever route in life we go i feel like the way jesus would have wanted us to live is is be the best and it’s a hard balance because you want to be competitive but you also want to be graceful and things like that but No. So he said my dad said, if we’re going to go for basketball, we’re going to try to be the best. And he just we went for it, you know, and I’ve been able to to to make it to the NBA, inspire a lot of people, you know, and it’s been it’s been it’s been a journey, but it has been worth it.
CHRYSANDRA :
Wow. And so, Michael, take us. So this journey of becoming becoming a world champion this last year, part of that team with the Denver Nuggets. That journey to that climax, what was the one of the hardest trials that you had to overcome, maybe even internally? You shared a little bit about some college experiences with being injured. But take us to one of them that you just you didn’t know if you were going to make it to the other side or not.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, so one thing I like to look back on, like, man, that’s crazy how God works, is the fact that I always was projected to be the number one draft pick. So, like, I was supposed to go number one. I envision draft night as just going perfect. You know, I get up off my seat and I’m the first name called. And, you know, I go to some team and I get to help change their program. But for me, because of my injuries, I dropped down in the draft all the way to 14 to come to Denver. And I never would have thought I would end up in Denver. That’d be like the last place I would have thought I would end up.
CHRYSANDRA :
Really?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
It’s crazy. Fast forwarding now, we won a world championship. I’m the first player in my draft. my draft class, like, out of the lottery guys, like, top 15, top 20, whatever, to win a championship. So all these guys went ahead of me in the draft to different programs, and I always, like, wanted to be one of the top few draft picks, but I got to come to Denver, and through this four or five-year process, we just became world champions, and, you know, we led our team to the first championship that the Denver Nuggets has ever had. But it’s just crazy looking back that… If I would have gone number one, you know, like I may not have been able to win a championship yet. It’s just cool looking back at like God redirects you, but there’s blessings in every, you know, route. It’s so just cool to look at it like that.
CHRYSANDRA :
Wow. I think that’s so inspiring, Michael, just to even hear that again today. And yeah, to have that stamped on our hearts of this story of your life that, yeah, it was so hard to get knocked down. And then to end up, Jesus is like, nope, my redemption story. You just watch it. It might take longer than you expected, but it’s so much better than you could imagine. 100%. So thank you for sharing that story. Michael, we have to take a short break. You guys, you’re listening to Michael Porter Jr. on with us live today. Stay tuned. Hi guys, this is Chrysandra Brunson, host of To All The Dreamers. I am so happy to introduce personal training, nutritional guidance, and behavioral change coaching. Healthy, happy, and heavenly for your wellness, spirit, soul, and body. Contact Mimi Kroger at healthyhappyandheavenly.com.
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CHRYSANDRA :
We are back. Thank you for tuning in to all the Dreamers radio show. I’m your host, Chrysandra Brunson, and we have Michael Porter Jr. on with us. And Michael, you were just sharing about God redirecting your steps and your path and that it wasn’t what you expected, but you ended up being the first out of all the people that were before you to win a world championship. What did that feel like? I’m sure you’ve been asked this question quite often, but just the surrealness of what Jesus was saying to you when you guys actually won. Because being a Denver native and you saying that the Nuggets was like your last pick that you would ever want to go on, no one really knew about the Denver Nuggets until this last year. So that is incredible. Yeah.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, I just think he just – it was just cool during those moments. It was just cool looking back. You know, it’s always crazy looking back, I think. So, you know, when the playoffs are happening and the championship happens, you know, you just focus on that moment. But then when you go home and you have those quiet times, like – First of all, you just get those times to look back on your life and see what led you to these moments. And that’s when I kind of realized, man, like my life has been redirected. But look at the blessings that have come out of it. But then on top of that, I think we also I also realized, you know, reaching the pinnacle of basketball, which is an NBA championship like. we have these goals in our dreams, in these dreams, but they are not everything. Like whatever your goal or dream is, you may reach that and realize that it is not, it’s not everything. You know, our relationship with God and the people we inspire in the process of where we’re trying to get to is really what matters more. I know so many people that reach a pinnacle or a goal and they’re just like, that’s it. And you know, it’s kind of how, not that the championship was not amazing and it was, and it was a blessing, but I think, Looking back, I can realize like it’s who you become in the process and it’s who you inspire in the process. And it’s not like we can’t enjoy our lives and be joyful and inspire people on our way to where we want to go individually. So I just think that’s a tidbit that I kind of just got to realize just reaching the championship, you know?
CHRYSANDRA :
Yeah. Yeah. It’s like. And out of anyone to have this experience, Michael, for you to really share, like you can win really a world championship. And there’s so much more that there’s so much more and that Jesus is the one to fill that. How have you been able to keep your priorities in alignment, Michael, just with everything that’s going on? all the different pressures, temptations, and just to surround yourself with really healthy community. How have you been able to take a step-by-step process of walking with Jesus and obedience to his calling on your life?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
yeah i mean i think it’s a lot easier said than done especially in the environment that i’m in and you know the people that i’m around on a day-to-day basis a lot of just you know a lot of the world nowadays is anti-god so to try to live that life is is hard and it can be lonely at times i do have some friends you know around the community and things like that that i lean on but at the same time it can be lonely and i think really what i’ve noticed is it’s really a day-by-day walk it’s not like you reach a point with god where like You reach a point and then you just coast and you’re good and you don’t make any bad decisions and you never fall into temptation. And it’s like we can be the person that God wants us to be like today. But the only way you do that, I think, is filling yourself up with him, with his word, you know, filling yourself up with the right things, the right people that you’re around. But it really is a day to day thing. It’s a day to day walk. If you. If you stray too far and, you know, you miss a few days and the word is something you may kind of go back to some old ways and some old habits. And I just I really think it’s a it’s a he gives you enough gas in the tank for for each day.
CHRYSANDRA :
But tell us more about Curious Mike and and your hopes and dreams behind this incredible podcast that you’ve created.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, for me, I think a lot of athletes, they, you know, they interview other athletes and talk about athlete stuff. But for me, when I created Curious Mike, I just think I want to touch different lanes of life. I feel like in the day we live in, you know, it’s like, You’re either over here or you’re over here. There’s no healthy conversation. There’s no people having their own opinions and respecting opinions. I feel like if you tweet the wrong things as an athlete, you might get canceled. Some people are very scared to speak their mind or speak what they believe in or have open dialogue about touchy subjects or subjects we need to talk about. For me, I created it just to… sit down with people and be able to have lengthy conversations. You know, people may, some people agree with me. Some people may not agree. People in all different like walks of life and have healthy conversations, difference of opinions, but respectful conversation that just opens people’s eyes to different, different subjects and different things. So for me, yeah, I’ll, I’ll interview some athletes and things like that, but it’s, it’s, I want to, it’s a wide range of people I want to touch. And I just, it’s definitely, um, my passion outside of basketball, I think my voice will be used most through that, through that podcast and, you know, things like this, um, I think is important because if I just play basketball all day, that’s very, you know, self-absorbed and whatever, but I want to use my voice and my platform to inspire people and just point people to what I believe and which is obviously Jesus, you know what I mean? And so that’s kind of the goal with the podcast though.
CHRYSANDRA :
We love it. We love it. Well, we’re excited to all tune in and we’re going to share more about that here in a little bit as we’re coming up to the towards the end of the show. Michael, can you just share one of our favorite questions we’d love to ask is what would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail and And God brought that to the calling and to me when I was a senior in high school a long time ago. And then for it to be a continual question that we can ask every single day as it changes. But what would be your answer to that question?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
What would you do if you couldn’t fail?
CHRYSANDRA :
Yeah.
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
I think personally, I think that there is no such thing as failure. So I already believe that. I believe that you go for what you want to go for. And if God redirects you in the process, you have faith and you trust that he’s doing that for a reason. So I really like the quote, you have to be confident enough to fail. You have to be confident enough to fail. So you go for it. You go for it and then you realize like if you fail, it’s not really failing. It’s redirection and it’s for a purpose. So that’s the way I look at it. Like a lot of people are so scared to fail. They don’t shoot for the stars. They don’t shoot for their goals because they’re terrified of failure, letting themselves down, letting the people around them down so they play it safe. You know what I mean? But if you really believe there’s no such thing as failure and all redirection is for a purpose, then you have freedom to go for it, I think.
CHRYSANDRA :
Right, right. We couldn’t agree more, and you are living that out fearlessly every single chance, and there is no concept of failure. And, Michael, people are afraid to go after what they’re called to, though. Maybe they’re listening to this right now on the radio. What would you tell them that they don’t need to be afraid, and why should they not be afraid?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Hmm. I mean, obviously, like, fear is a human feeling. And I feel like it’s okay to feel those things. But if that limits you from your purpose, I would say… like this is a short life we live. We don’t get to be here forever. And God gave you talents and he gave you, he gave you, you know, desires of your heart and things like that. I would just say like, don’t let your fears stop you from pursuing your goals. I feel like you can have fear and still have faith at the same time. You know, when God is calling you somewhere, there may be some fear there. I’m not going to sit here and act like I’m, some superhuman i feel like i i’m scared a lot you know i’m scared and i have and i get nervous and i get fearful sometimes but i just think we can’t let that we our courage needs to outweigh our fear i would say and i feel like you can you can strengthen your courage by just doing things all the time that you’re a little bit fearful of, or you’re a little bit, you know, timid of how people will look at you, whatever. And that’s a muscle you can strengthen. So now when big things come up or you’re being pushed in a certain direction, you’ve trained that muscle of courage and over fear. And I feel like that’s how people become great in life is they got to the point where, yeah, they feel those feelings, but their faith and their courage outweighs their fear. So, I mean, that’s all I would say, but fear is a human emotion. I think it’s good to understand that that’s normal, but we can’t let it stop us from our purpose.
CHRYSANDRA :
Amen. It’s so powerful. I have goosebumps, Michael, from that. It’s so powerful. Michael, we’re coming up towards the end of the show here, and everyone wants to be able to come alongside to support you and your God-given dreams and calling, even more so just praying and being a part of a really strong, healthy community from around the world cheering you on. How can they get in touch with you and be a part of the movement that you are continuing to make around the world?
MICHAEL PORTER JR. :
Yeah, I mean, I think, yeah, check out the podcast. I got some good podcasts on there. For Christian specifically, I got a great podcast with Lecrae, who’s a Christian rapper who’s amazing. That was one of my first episodes. I have a podcast episode with Judah Smith, who’s a big pastor out in L.A. that I’m really, really close with. Yeah, he’s the best. So if you if you want to start there and watch those couple podcasts, I think there’s a lot of nuggets in there. And then, yeah, follow me on Instagram. It’s MPJ and then follow Curious Mike because we’re always coming out with new. I have a Curious Mike Instagram and we’ll post like clips of the podcast and you can actually DM that account. And I’ll get back to people. Sometimes my sister is also on the council. She’ll get back to people if they have specific questions or and we can we can answer those. If you have questions for me, sometimes I do solo episodes and I’ll answer people’s questions. So you can DM Curious Mike a question or you can just say something that’s been weighing on your heart or whatever. And I try to find some time to to get back, go back and forth with people.
CHRYSANDRA :
Yes. So humble and honorable, Michael. We just love that. And I challenge everyone to be able to connect with Michael right now. If you’re driving, you’re listening to this on the road, pull over right now. Go follow Michael as well as Curious Mike and your life will be changed. We couldn’t ask for a better role model and example, Michael. So we just we thank you. Challenge everyone to go to thecallingnonprofit.org to be able to find Michael and Curious Mike to listen to those podcasts. And to be encouraged to know that whatever dream Jesus has put on your heart, you can go after for such a time as this. Till next time, dreamer. Keep dreaming big.
