Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. charged with assaulting his girlfriend

Mar 11, 2021; Sacramento, California, USA; Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. (3) dunks the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the second quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

According to Tim McMahon of ESPN on Monday, Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. was arrested and charged with assaulting and strangling his girlfriend, Kysre Gondrezick of Benton Harbor, Michigan. Gondrezick also plays basketball, as she was the fourth overall pick by the Indiana Fever in the 2021 WNBA Draft.

The incident on Monday in New York City has the potential to be extremely serious. That is because Gondrezick has a fractured vertebrae and a cut over her eye. New York prosecutors state that she was seen in the Millennium Hilton Hotel hallway covered in blood according to ESPN on Tuesday.

Porter Jr. was supposed to be an integral part of the Rockets team this season. Now, in all likelihood. he will be facing a lengthy suspension. In 2022-23, Porter Jr. averaged career-highs in points per game (19.2), rebounds per game (four), steals per game (1.4), and free throw percentage (.784). Porter’s field goal percentage of .442 matched a career high when he also had a .440 field goal percentage when with the Cleveland Cavaliers as a rookie in 2019-20. He also had 5.7 assists per game, and a three-point percentage of .366 this past season.

This was definitely going to be a new look Rockets organization in 2023-24. In the offseason, they came to terms with free agents Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks. VanVleet and Brooks both have Canadian connections. VanVleet played last year for the Toronto Raptors, and Brooks is from Mississauga, Ontario. Houston also signed Ime Udoka as their new head coach. Udoka was with the Boston Celtics as their head coach from 2021 to 2022.

Prior to the incident Porter Jr. encountered with his girlfriend, the former first round pick was involved in two prior controversial incidents. In 2020, he was charged with improper handling of a firearm in a vehicle, and later involved in an incident where he rammed his car into Gondrezick’s vehicle.

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