Thunder to Acquire and Waive Kevin Porter Jr. in Trade With Rockets

The Rockets are trading oft-troubled guard Kevin Porter Jr. to the Thunder, with Houston also sending two second-round picks to Oklahoma City, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

In exchange, the Thunder will send guard Victor Oladipo and forward/center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to the Rockets, Wojnarowski added.

Porter was arrested a month ago on charges of assault and strangulation following a 911 call from a New York hotel that took place just before 7 a.m. locally. The call came from his girlfriend, who needed to be hospitalized. Reports suggest the charges against Porter have been dropped.

But that was not his first run-in with the law since entering the NBA.

He was also arrested following a traffic incident while a member of the Cavaliers back in 2020. The Cavs traded him to the Rockets after he allegedly yelled at GM/president of basketball operations Koby Altman during a locker room incident.

Porter, 23, is 6-foot-4 and appeared in 59 games last season with Houston, averaging 19.2 points, 5.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds.

Per Wojnarowski, the Thunder will be on the hook for the $16.9 million left on Porter’s deal as they waive him.

Meanwhile, this marks the second time this offseason that Oladipo has been traded, with the Thunder acquiring him from the Heat. He has played for both the Thunder and Rockets previously, though leg injuries seem to have robbed him of his explosiveness and there’s no telling if Houston will keep him this time around.

Oladipo, 31, is 6-4 and appeared in 54 games with the Heat over the past two-plus years combined, He averaged a career-low 10.7 points on 40 percent shooting last season.

Robinson-Earl, 22, is 6-9 and averaged 6.8 points and 4.2 rebounds in 43 games with the Thunder in 2022-23. He may be the lone player from this transaction that sticks.

The Thunder are acquiring a 2027 second via Minnesota and a 2028 second via Milwaukee in the deal, sources said. Porter Jr., is facing assault charges based on an incident with a girlfriend. OKC is essentially buying the two picks and releasing Porter Jr.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 17, 2023