When the Denver Nuggets traded Michael Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets earlier this offseason, it ended a six-year partnership between Porter and Nikola Jokic that produced one of the league’s most lethal offensive duos. But instead of an emotional farewell, Jokic’s parting words have gone viral for being as blunt as they were hilarious.
Appearing on the Glory Daze podcast with Johnny Manziel, Porter revealed how his former Nuggets teammates reacted to the news.
“It was tough saying goodbye to my teammates, especially Jamal and Aaron, the guys that have been there for a long time. They just all kind of texted in the group chat. And the only thing Nikola said was, ‘Wrap it up out there in NYC.'”
“That’s all he said.”
“And he said, ‘Make sure you wear a condom out there.’ That’s all he said. That was his message. That was his goodbye to me. Those are my guys. Those have been my family. But it’s the nature of the sport, and we’re going to stay in touch.”
Michael Porter Jr. says Nikola Jokić texted him, “Make sure you wear condom out there,” after his trade to Brooklyn 😂😂😂
(h/t @DNVR_Nuggets / @Andrew_Fenichel )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 21, 2025
The exchange quickly went viral, with fans pointing out how perfectly it fit Jokic’s dry, often brutally honest sense of humor. The two spent Porter’s entire NBA career together in Denver, winning a championship in 2023 and building an on-court chemistry that made the Nuggets one of the most dangerous teams in the West.
For Jokic, the message was probably as close to sentimental as he was willing to get.
The text also highlights the unique bond between the two. Jokic, who has long kept basketball and his personal life separate, rarely makes public comments about teammates.
At the same time, his humor and delivery have garnered him the status of a cult figure with fans. For Porter Jr., the brief but savage goodbye is a reflection of how much Jokic trusted their relationship. It was less flowery words and more about brotherly humor.
Jokic’s remark comes at a time when Porter Jr. has faced heavy scrutiny from the public since the trade.
Shortly after the trade, he appeared with a transgender model in Taiwan and social media erupted.
Then, a video went viral of him giving cash to a homeless man rummaging through garbage in New York City, and the man shooed him away.
Porter has been especially candid on his YouTube channel recently. He said his vice was women and contrasted himself with his younger brother Jontay Porter, who was banned for life from the NBA.
Porter even cautioned that scandals with betting could only get worse in the league, with the ongoing investigations into Malik Beasley and Terry Rozier.
There are other clips coming back to the fold, such as Porter claiming he’d never date someone who had ever dated another NBA player, and another where he acknowledged showing Andrew Tate clips on dates to test women, which created much online ire.
Jokic’s words, while likely a tongue-in-cheek remark, were fittingly perfect in their own right: a balanced combination of some remediation, candor, and a gentle warning to a teammate entering one of sports’ hardest markets.
