By Alex Raskin Sports News Editor for Dailymail.com 5:46 p.m. Oct 17, 2023, updated 6:19 p.m. Oct 17, 2023
Kevin Porter Jr. will become an NBA free agent after being accused of beating his girlfriend in a Manhattan hotel on September 11th.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Houston Rockets are trading Porter to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are looking to release the former USC star.
Victor Oladipo and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl will move to Houston as part of the deal, while Oklahoma City acquires two future second-round picks.
ESPN later reported that the Thunder would have to pay the $16.9 million guaranteed on Porter Jr.’s contract if they waive him.
Spokespeople for the Thunder and Rockets did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for confirmation.
Kevin Porter Jr. appears in criminal court for a hearing on third-degree assault. Porter Jr. and Kysre Gondrezick will attend the Smart Tox launch event on September 7th
Porter had been ordered to stay away from the Rockets after he was arrested in Manhattan last month when he was accused of attacking his girlfriend, former WNBA star Kysre Gondrezick.
On Monday, New York prosecutors reduced the assault charge against Porter after finding that he did not fracture a vertebra in Gondrezick’s neck, as was initially reported. Porter is due back in court on November 27th.
Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Mirah Curzer said Monday there was “insufficient” evidence to charge Porter with second-degree assault.
“What initially appeared to be a fractured vertebra was in fact not an injury caused by the defendant,” Curzer told Judge Jay Weiner on Monday.
What was initially thought to be an injury from the suspected September 11 attack turned out to be a genetic defect, according to documents obtained by the New York Post.
The charge against Houston Rockets guard Porter Jr. was reduced to third-degree assault. Gondrezick was found by police with cuts to her neck and right side at her hotel. Gondrezick was taken to NYU Langone Medical Center after the alleged attack
With his hair braided in braids, the 6-foot-tall Seattle native appeared with his lawyers on the way in and out of the Manhattan courtroom on Monday. Porter wore a white jumpsuit from Italian luxury fashion house Moncler.
“The allegations against him are deeply disturbing,” Stone said in a statement earlier this month. “When I heard the allegations a few weeks ago, I informed his representatives that he could not be a member of the Houston Rockets.”
Gondrezick went to the hospital after an alleged attack at the Millennium Hotel in New York City. The NYPD told DailyMail.com that when police arrived, Gondrezick had a laceration on the right side of her face and a preliminary examination revealed she had been struck multiple times.
According to NBC, she was taken to the hospital with at least one broken bone and bruises after the alleged attack.
Porter and Gondrezick have been together since February 2022. Gondrezick poses for a photo that she shared on her Instagram account. The Rockets traded Porter Jr. to the Thunder, who are now fighting for his contract
The NBA player had reportedly returned from a night out in the early hours of Monday morning. Gondrezick was dissatisfied with how late he had returned and locked the door.
When Porter entered the room with the help of hotel security, he allegedly beat Gondrezick.
After his arrest, Porter was released on $75,000 bail. The judge ordered him to stay away from Gondrezick and imposed a temporary protective order against him.
“This is a serious case of domestic violence,” Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Mirah Curzer said in court.