NBA’s Kevin Porter fractured girlfriend’s vertebrae in NYC: prosecutors

Rising NBA star Kevin Porter Jr. was turned loose on $75,000 cash bond Tuesday after prosecutors revealed his girlfriend’s vertebrae was fractured during a brutal Manhattan hotel beating, with the hoopster accused of repeatedly punching and choking the victim.
Porter, 23, appeared for his Manhattan arraignment in the Monday morning beatdown of WNBA free agent Kysre Gondrezick inside the Millennium Hilton New York One UN Plaza barely 24 hours after a 6:45 a.m. call to 911 brought police to the East Side location.
An order of protection was granted to the 26-year-old victim at the Manhattan Criminal Court hearing.
The Houston Rockets guard posted the bail after his hearing, ignoring questions as he left the courthouse with his attorneys. Porter hopped into a waiting SUV and departed.
The alleged assault was sparked when Porter returned to their hotel after a late night only to find he was locked out of the room, police sources said. The ensuing argument between the couple escalated quickly, with the NBA star assaulting his girlfriend once hotel staff let him inside, the sources said.
The defendant, his hair in cornrows, wore a gray jean jacket in court as a criminal complaint alleged Gondrezick was repeatedly hit with a closed fist and choked to the point where she struggled to breathe. The Houston Rockets guard was coming off his best season as a pro, averaging nearly 20 points per game, before his arrest on charges of felony assault and strangulation.
Gondrezick was treated for her injuries, including a cut to the right side of her face and neck pain, at a nearby hospital. Parker choked her with such force he fractured a vertebrae in her neck, prosecutors said.
Parker stood with his hands behind his back during the hearing, with his next court date set for Oct. 16.
Porter had previously dodged criminal charges after a 2020 arrest where a loaded .45 caliber pistol and marijuana were allegedly found after the athlete flipped his Mercedes SUV. The athlete was cleared by an Ohio grand jury but spent half of the season on the NBA inactive list before his trade to the Rockets.
The guard then posted a career best season last year, averaging 19.2 points and 5.7 assists per game. He signed a $63-million four-year deal with Houston last year.
The couple appeared together in a February 2022 Instagram Live broadcast and were featured in courtside photo posted on the NBA’s social media account.
The victim was the fourth player taken in the 2021 WNBA draft, playing one season with the Indiana Fever.