Milwaukee Bucks forward MarJon Beauchamp (3) drives to the basket during the first half of their preseason game against the Chicago Bulls Sunday, October 8, 2023 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
MILWAUKEE, WI (WSAU) – The NBA trade deadline has passed, and the Milwaukee Bucks made a last-minute trade with the Los Angeles Clippers involving a swap of former first-round picks.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Milwaukee has agreed to trade 2022 first-round pick MarJon Beauchamp to the Los Angeles Clippers for former 2019 first-round pick and former Houston Rockets rising star Kevin Porter Jr., who was accused of assault by his former WNBA ex-girlfriend Kysre Gondrezick in a New York City hotel room back in 2023.
Last January, Porter reached a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault and harassment charges and was ordered to complete a 26-week abusive partner intervention program or an equivalent program with a private counselor, attend all court dates, and avoid further arrests. He complied with those terms for a year which allowed him to withdraw his assault plea and clear his criminal record.
The Rockets traded Porter in October to the Oklahoma City Thunder not long after the charges were filed, who then waived him before he signed with the Clippers last offseason.
Porter Jr. averaged 9.3 points and 3.2 assists per game during his time with the Clippers and provides Doc Rivers with another young guard option off the bench who could become part of the team’s second-string rotation along with Jericho Sims, Gary Trent Jr., and Bobby Portis, who will finish this season with the Bucks after they were unable to find a suitable trade destination for him.
According to sources who’ve spoken to NBA insider Sean Wright, the Bucks were very active on Thursday after they traded Delon Wright and cash to the Knicks for center Jericho Sims, including discussing several frameworks that include a deal with the Brooklyn Nets to acquire forward Cam Johnson, which stalled after Brooklyn requested more draft picks than Milwaukee could provide. Wright also reported that the Bucks had spoken to the Memphis Grizzlies about a deal that would’ve sent Marcus Smart to the Bucks in exchange for Bobby Portis, Pat Connaughton, MarJon Beauchamp, and draft compensation. Smart was traded to the Washington Wizards shortly before the deadline passed.
Other deals that were reportedly discussed included the Hawks’ forward Bogdan Bogdanovic coming to Milwaukee; however, he was also traded to the Clippers for Terance Mann and Bones Hyland at the deadline.
