Houston Rockets’ Round-Up: KPJ Anniversary

April 29th, 2021. In most seasons, the Houston Rockets playing games in late April and early May indicates a successful season. It’s a time typically reserved for the playoffs and, more times than not in the last 35 years, that has meant a Houston playoff run. 

But last season? The Houston Rockets were coming off of five straight losses, living through a season with just 15 wins to that point, and had been forced into a dramatic rebuild in January. Days earlier, veteran John Wall had officially declared he was inactive the rest of the season. Eric Gordon, the lone holdover from the 2018 Western Conference Finals run, had made a similar decision six weeks earlier. The Houston Rockets were in the doldrums, and the fans were desperate for anything. 

Insert Kevin Porter Jr. 

GM Rafael Stone traded a top-55 protected pick for Porter Jr. in late January 2021. With the pick never really conveying, the Houston Rockets essentially added Porter Jr. for nothing. 

To be fair to the Cleveland Cavaliers, they had had problems with Porter Jr.After the Cavs acquired Taurean Prince, Porter Jr.’s locker was moved, and things went south. Reports vary, but the outburst in the locker room was too much to reconcile. He came to the Rockets, then headed to the G League affiliate Rio Grande Valley Vipers to get his feet wet. Porter Jr. notched a 27-point triple-double in the G League within a month. By early March, Porter Jr. was starting for the Houston Rockets.

And then, April 29th? Porter Jr. went off for 50 points and 11 assists against the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks.

What did it Look Like?

In the first quarter, Porter Jr. showed off his ability to be a future point guard. He dished out four assists, three times finding a sealing post player with deep position and another hitting Kenyon Martin Jr. for a roll. Porter Jr. had three crafty finishes around the rim, including an off-hand finger role across Jrue Holiday’s face that was particularly eye-opening. He shot one of three from beyond the arc- in line with his season average. All in all? It was a good quarter in which Porter Jr. played 12 minutes. But on its surface, it was nothing historical. Yet.

Porter Jr. started the second quarter on the bench and logged just seven minutes. But, if you were watching the game on NBA League Pass to this point, the second quarter was when things started to be “different.” Porter Jr. came off of a Kelly Olynyk screen, and Olynyk dove to the paint. Porter Jr. had hit him or Wood for easy baskets before, so the defense hesitated slightly. Porter pulled up and made them pay from three-point land. He held his follow-through, looked at the Houston fans, and it was on. Houston’s next possession? He did the same thing with Olynyk. This time from the other wing.

On the next possession, off of a dummy screen from Armoni Brooks, the defense sat on Porter for a half of a beat. Porter hit Brooks. Three more points. Porter would find Olynyk and Christian Wood for assists within the last 30 seconds of the quarter, while the Bucks’ defense was playing for Halftime. Scoot smelled blood, and the Houston Rockets were only down seven.

Porter Jr. came out of halftime cooking. Against former Rocket PJ Tucker? He crossed left to right for a long-two. Later, when Tucker sagged? Porter Jr. hit a three in his eyes. Smothered by Holiday in the corner? He hit a step-back three, eerily reminiscent of a former Houston Rocket lefty. He hit an and-one over Mt. Brook Lopez. He pinned Bobby Portis’ shot off the backboard. Porter Jr. punished the Zone for slow rotations with a three, setting up later beating their overzealous hands for a feed to Jae’Sean Tate. Porter Jr. had 15 points in the third quarter. 

With 12 minutes left to play, Porter Jr. had 33 points and 8 assists. A great game for a 20-year-old, and a fantastic one against the defensive-minded soon-to-be NBA champs. But the Houston Rockets had 12 minutes left to play, thus Porter Jr. was far from done. 

Porter Jr. sat to start the quarter… Briefly. Instead of his traditional five to six minutes of rest, Porter came back in just a couple of minutes after the quarter began. Once he came back in, he was in attack mode. Houston ran multiple pistol actions with him, Olynyk, and Wood. When the defense’s hand help wasn’t enough, KPJ Euro stepped over and under the arms to create lay-ups that looked like HORSE shots. When they collapsed? He found Wood and Olynyk. And when the lights shined bright, in a tie game with 4:30 left, it was Scoot’s time. Multiple step-back threes over Lopez, what should have been a four-point play over Holiday, and some icing free throws. KPJ did everything.  

41 minutes. 26 shots. 11 assists. 50 points. In a seven-point win over the best team in the NBA, Porter Jr. was +19. At 20 years old. 

What did it Mean?

Rockets fans have seen 50-point performances before. Harden himself had 23 of them, including five 50-point triple-doubles (one of which was a 60-point triple-double). But Porter Jr.’s performance and the win meant so much to Houston Rockets fans. Houston was the worst team in the NBA in terms of wins and losses but had no guarantee to keep their draft pick. Their pick (that eventually became Jalen Green) was top-four protected, and even as the worst team, the Rockets had just a 48-percent chance of being in the top four. They had worse odds than a coin flip to lose the draft pick entirely. All of the losses could have been for nothing.

But then, Porter Jr. did that. While he’s had his ups and downs since and is entering a crucial time in his career next season, that was a moment to remember. 

Without knowing what was coming in the 2021 NBA draft, the hope for the future fell on the shoulders of a 20-year-old from Seattle. And on April 29th? That felt safe.

Porter Jr. exhibited growth in the latter part of the 2020-21 season, and he molded the “point guard” role to fit his strengths over the course of the most recent season. His future role is less certain. There’s a path where Porter Jr. is a starting perimeter player for a great Rockets team, there’s another where he’s coming off of the bench. There is also a third, where he builds up his resume and Houston moves him for a final piece, that Houston Rockets fans wish not to talk about. (And there is also a fourth, where he is asked to come off of the bench, does not like the Sixth Man role, and has a similar exodus as he did in Cleveland… but now is not the time.)

Houston Rockets fans will hold onto the idea of Porter Jr. being a part of the future until he isn’t because it was the only thing they could look to. 

And for one night, Porter Jr. shined so bright they couldn’t look away. 

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