NBA’s Porter dodges jail with plea deal in assault
NBA star Kevin Porter Jr. avoided jail time by pleading guilty Tuesday to misdemeanor assault months after he was arrested and charged with beating up his girlfriend in a Manhattan hotel.
Under the agreement entered in Manhattan Supreme Court, Porter pleaded guilty to third-degree reckless assault, a misdemeanor, and second-degree harassment, a violation.
If Porter meets the terms of a court-ordered probation program, the case eventually may be dismissed.
Porter, 23, was initially charged with felony assault and strangulation after his early-morning arrest Sept. 11 at the Millennium Hilton New York One UN Plaza, near the United Nations.
Cops responding to a 911 call said Porter and his girlfriend, former WNBA player Kysre Gondrezick, had argued about Porter’s late return to the hotel, where they had been staying.
Porter had got security to let him into their room because Gondrezick, 26, had dead-bolted the door shut, police sources said.
Gondrezick emerged beaten about 10 minutes later, the sources said, and was treated at a hospital for a cut to the right side of her face and neck pain.
Porter, who played for the Houston Rockets at the time, has since been traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The team waived him, which had the effect of removing him from its roster.
In 2020, Cleveland police cuffed Porter after he flipped his Mercedes-Benz SUV. Cops discovered a loaded .45-caliber pistol and some marijuana in the vehicle.
Porter also dodged potential prison time in that case when an Ohio grand jury voted not to indict him on felony weapons charges. Misdemeanor charges including marijuana possession and driving without a license were also dropped.
Gondrezick was the fourth player chosen in the 2021 draft by the Indiana Fever. She played one season but has not played since and is a free agent.