LeBron? Bring it on.

Kawhi? Let’s fly.

“It’s something that I’m taking head-on, and it’s something I want to do,” Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. said Saturday during a Zoom call with reporters. “I want to be one of the best players (on the floor) and I want to guard the best players. And I want the best players on the other team to guard me. So it’s a challenge that I’m going to take on. And I’m looking forward to it.”

The role for Porter in his third season in Denver — and second on the floor — figures to be one of the more juicy narratives coming into the regular season for the NBA’s reigning Western Conference runners-up.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone said earlier in the week that he hopes the 6-foot-10 former University of Missouri standout can crack the starting lineup. But the coach also noted that Porter’s going to have to earn that spot and keep showing the progress and development flashed during the NBA restart late this past summer in Orlando.

“I would love to start,” said Porter, who averaged 9.3 points, 4.7 boards and 1.1 treys in 55 regular-season games but netted 22.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.7 threes per game in Orlando prior to the postseason. “Obviously, nothing is given to you, you’ve got to earn it. But yes, I’d love to be the starter.”

He’d also love to get more minutes with Denver stars Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, especially in crunch time. Murray and Jokic’s two-man game is already one of the more renowned in NBA circles. But is there room for a third wheel?

“We knew that this time was coming where we, all three, were going to learn how to play on the floor (together),” Porter said. “If it’ll develop that chemistry, it’ll be a special thing.”

The loss of veteran wing guard Will Barton during the postseason meant more minutes for MPJ at Disney World, during which the young forward notched an average of 11.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.8 treys and 23.7 minutes over 19 playoff appearances.

And with Jerami Grant signing a free-agent deal in Detroit, there appear to be more minutes for Porter early in this regular season, too.

“Obviously,” MPJ said, “I’m going to have to take a jump in my role.”

Porter, who appeared Saturday as part of the Nuggets’ media events at the beginning of preseason training camp, noted that most of his off-season work took place back home in Columbia, Mo. But that autumn regimen also included a week in Los Angeles training with Bradley Beal and Jayson Tatum.

“I was really consistent in my work off the court,” MPJ said. “I feel that I’ll be better this year in almost every area than I was last year.”

How much better? Enough improvement that you think you’ll become the Nuggets’ third offensive star?

“Yeah,” Porter replied with a grin. “I do.”