Kevin Porter Jr.’s NBA career was derailed when charges were pressed against him in a domestic violence case last year. After a promising start with the Rockets’ G-League team, the 2019 NBA draft pick was offered a bumper contract, which would have helped the franchise to build a team with him among the notable pieces.
However, tragedy struck soon after, rendering him off the court since October last year. Now, the 23-year-old has an opportunity to put his basketball career back on track, but this opportunity has not been presented to him by an NBA team.
Kevin Porter Jr. agrees to PAOK deal
According to Kelly Iko and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Kevin Porter Jr. has agreed to a deal with the Greek outfit PAOK for the rest of the season. The GBL team is currently sitting in the 9th spot in the 12-team league. KPJ did not have the smoothest of times with the Houston franchise.
Despite becoming the youngest player ever to score 50+ points and 10+ assists in a single league game in 2021 against the Milwaukee Bucks, Porter made headlines for the wrong reasons more often.
He was fined $50,000 for breaking NBA safety protocols before getting into a bust-up with the Houston coaching staff, which led to a match suspension. Despite all that, the franchise renewed his contract in 2022 with a 4-year, $82 million deal. However, just after a year, everything fell apart for the promising guard as legal troubles decimated his career.
Kevin Porter Jr.’s legal troubles
Last year in September, reports emerged accusing Kevin Porter Jr. of domestic violence against WNBA player Kysre Gondrezick, who was his then-girlfriend. Charges were pressed against the former NBA player for strangling and assaulting Kyrse at a Manhattan hotel.
Despite Kyrse claiming that the guard did not harm him physically, Porter was charged with third-degree reckless assault and second-degree harassment. In January, he reportedly agreed to a plea deal and underwent a correction program which would allow him to withdraw the plea to assault once the program concluded.
Meanwhile, he was traded by the Rockets to the OKC, but the former waived him due to negative press stemming from the domestic assault case. This was not his only legal trouble though.
In 2020, Mahoning County police detained the then-Cavs player over a car accident and firearm possession. Later, the case was dismissed due to both the car and the gun being licensed under his mother’s name.
His temper tantrums were also reported during an incident in a nightclub. In 2021, the Rockets guard reportedly confronted the club DJ over dissatisfaction with music and smashed his laptop, causing a brawl.
With a record of serial offenses to his name, Kevin Porter Jr. can only pray that he does not get into trouble during his time with PAOK, given the Greek Police’s stern image against crime of any form.
