The Houston Rockets are currently looking to navigate the controversy surrounding guard Kevin Porter Jr. Porter Jr. was recently arrested on assault charges in New York City, and now former Rockets guard Austin Rivers is speaking out about some things he heard about Porter when he was a member of the organization.
Rivers recently stopped by The Ringer NBA Show podcast to discuss his experiences with the Rockets.
“That door's got to be closed,” said Rivers. “I don't even want to be that guy. But, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, three times, four times, five times, six times… we're like past chance seven at this point. I remember talking to guys in the Houston Rockets organization, higher ups. They were talking about how they were having issues then. Like, ‘we don't know what to do with him.' This is when he just got there from Cleveland.”
Kevin Porter Jr. was indeed traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Rockets in the summer of 2021. Porter has had various off-court issues throughout his career, including being arrested for weapons charges (which were later dropped) as well as an incident where he left a Rockets home game at halftime after having a disagreement with a teammate.
Now, it is unclear what the next steps are after Porter's recent arrest in New York City. There has been speculation that the team may look to trade him, but nothing has been confirmed as of yet.
The Houston Rockets begin their 2023-24 season on October 25 against the Orlando Magic.