The choice to extend Kevin Porter Jr. was not easy for Houston. On the field, the point guard has proven his talent, averaging 15.9 points, 6.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds in two years at Texas.
Except that there are many questions about the 22-year-old player. On the ground first, where his efficiency is average at 42% shooting success since he joined the Rockets (36% from afar) and his defense is clearly under construction. His complementarity with Jalen Green is also a question mark for the future of the franchise.
Off the field too, since he arrived in the NBA with a bad reputation following his sidelining at USC, and he was outright kicked out by the Cavaliers, after freaking out in the locker room.
Bonuses and conditions to keep KPJ under control
However, ESPN and The Athletic are reporting that Kevin Porter Jr. has just signed an $82.5 million four-year contract with Houston, beginning in the 2023/24 season. In detail, it could reach 18.4 million in 2023/24, 19.9 million in 2024/25, 21.4 million in 2025/26 and 22.8 million in 2026/27.
Except that this contract reflects both the club’s confidence in KPJ… and its doubts. Because while waiting to know the exact conditions, we know that it is only very partially guaranteed, only the first year being totally guaranteed. According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, the guarantees on the second season activate on certain dates, while the fourth year of the contract is a “team option”, which the team can activate or therefore refuse as it wishes.
The Rockets thus seem to have placed heaps of bonuses and conditions to protect themselves in case Kevin Porter Jr. repeats his own. And thus force him to be involved and serious.
| Kevin Porter, Jr. | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2019-20 | KEY | 50 | 23 | 44.2 | 33.5 | 72.3 | 0.4 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 1.9 | 0.3 | 10.0 |
| 2020-21 | HOO | 26 | 32 | 42.5 | 31.1 | 73.4 | 0.8 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 6.3 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 3.5 | 0.3 | 16.6 |
| 2021-22 | HOO | 61 | 31 | 41.5 | 37.5 | 64.2 | 0.7 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 6.2 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 3.2 | 0.4 | 15.6 |
| Total | 137 | 29 | 42.4 | 35.2 | 68.6 | 0.6 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 0.3 | 13.7 | |
