As the 6 p.m. ET deadline approaches, a number of players from the 2019 NBA Draft have gotten extensions done in the last week, most notably Jordan Poole and Tyler Herro getting nine-figure extensions in Golden State and Miami.
We’ve also seen some players from the back half of the draft lock up financial security, like Brandon Clarke in Memphis at 4 years, $52 million, but Monday brought word of the most unique extension of this cycle, as Houston worked out a 4-year, $82.5 million extension with Kevin Porter Jr., where only the first year is fully guaranteed.
Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr., has agreed on a four-year, $82.5 million contract extension, his agent Sam Permut of @RocNationSports tells ESPN. pic.twitter.com/3EB2ymuwaw
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 17, 2022
Kevin Porter Jr.’s four-year extension is only guaranteed for $15.86 million, all in Year 1, sources said. The contract includes June trigger dates after first season, but the Rockets can essentially release Porter at any point without further pay up to the $82.5M. https://t.co/A806sRcnaE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 17, 2022
Porter Jr. has taken a leap in production since arriving in Houston, last year averaging 15.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game while posting a career-best 37.5 percent shooting mark from three-point range. Porter Jr.’s development has shown his tremendous upside on the floor, but off the court he has still dealt with a few incidents that have colored his reputation since arriving in the league, like getting suspended one game last year for allegedly throwing something at assistant coach John Lucas at halftime and then leaving and getting fined for going to a club and violating COVID protocols in 2021.
Those situations are why Porter Jr.’s contract features the structure it does — which Woj referred to as “unique” — as the Rockets clearly believe in Porter Jr.’s potential to be a core piece of their rebuild and pay him as such, while leaving themselves with some outs if future incidents arise. For Porter Jr., he gets to stay with a team that believes in him and gets some financial security, with the potential to make an awful lot if he continues to produce and play to his talent level.
