Kevin Porter (born April 17, 1950) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He played eleven seasons in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA) and led the league in assists four times in his pro career.

Amateur career

Born and raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Porter graduated from DuSable High School, earning a starting

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

spot as a sophomore, averaging 15 ppg and 7 apg. Steady improvement in his junior (to 20.7 ppg, 9 apg) and senior seasons (22.9 ppg, 13 apg), earned him All-City and All-Area honors in 1968. Porter led DuSable to the last

Chicago Daily News The ''Chicago Daily News'' was an afternoon daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, published between 1875 and 1978 in Chicago, Illinois. History The ''Daily News'' was founded by Melville E. Stone, Percy Meggy, and William Dougherty ...

Christmas Holiday Tournament Championship. Porter then played collegiately at Saint Francis University in

Loretto, Pennsylvania Loretto is a borough in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 census it had a population of 1,302. Like the rest of Cambria County, it is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Johnstown Metropolita ...

. Porter thrived at Saint Francis, scoring 1,766 points in his career, averaging 22.9 over four years, including 24.7 ppg as a senior.

Professional career

Over an 11-year NBA career, Porter averaged 11.6 ppg, 8.1 apg, while winning four assist titles. Basketball historian Bijan Bayne said, “What always stood out about Kevin Porter is that he was pass-first, in an era of

Pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

, Clyde,

Pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle (mollusc), mantle) of a living Exoskeleton, shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pear ...

, Tiny, Westphal and Jo Jo. That watered down his star quality. But he had this signature high yo-yo dribble that was under supreme control, as he surveyed with his head up—unusual before Magic. He should be remembered as someone with quickness and vision who orchestrated NBA games against history’s premier guards.” Porter himself added, "That's what I did. I got the ball to scorers. That's what kept me in the league that long."

Baltimore / Capital / Washington Bullets (1972–1975)

In the 1972 NBA draft, Porter was the 39th overall pick, selected by the Baltimore Bullets in the third round. In his second year, he led the league in personal fouls with 319. While he received 320 the next year, he won a starting role and won the first of four NBA assist titles (8.0 per game) in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. The Bullets reached the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

, but were swept by the underdog

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

Detroit Pistons (1975–1977)

In late August 1975, Porter was traded to the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

for

Dave Bing David Bing (born November 24, 1943) is an American former professional basketball player, businessman and politician who served as the 74th mayor of Detroit, Michigan from 2009 to 2014. He is a member of the Democratic Party. After starring at ...

and a first round draft pick used to select Tree Rollins. Porter suffered a knee injury in the first season with Detroit and appeared in only nineteen games. Returning to the court for the 1976-77 Detroit Pistons season, Porter clashed with coach Herb Brown, telling a

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...

reporter, "Write this - I want out. He is not man enough to say that the problem is him and me — well, I am. Nothing is going to get solved here." Sports Illustrated covered the tension but the Pistons made the post-season (44–38, .537) despite challenges between Brown and Porter, as well as those with Marvin "Bad News" Barnes in a season PistonsPowered would describe as "absolutely insane, probably the craziest in Pistons history. They won a lot of games, but were completely dysfunctional." John Papanek of

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

(SI) would state, "if the Pistons were a TV mini-series, they would make

Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...

seem like Ding Dong School."

New Jersey Nets (1977–1978)

In the early start of his third season with the Pistons, the tensions with Brown came to a head as Porter was traded with Howard Porter and cash to the

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

for Al Skinner, a 1978 2nd round draft pick (used to select

Terry Tyler Terry Christopher Tyler (born October 30, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player. Amateur career A 6'7" forward from Northwestern High School, Tyler signed to play for Dick Vitale at the University of Detroit. Tyler ave ...

) and a 1979 2nd round draft pick (used to select Tony Price). Herb Brown was fired as well. With New Jersey, on February 24, 1978, Porter had 29 assists in a game against the Rockets while with the Nets. He also had 14 points and 5 rebounds in a season that led to his 2nd assist title (10.2 apg). The per-game assist record would stand until

Scott Skiles Scott Allen Skiles Sr. (born March 5, 1964) is an American former basketball coach and player. He coached the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. A first-round draft pick out of Michigan State University, Skiles played ...

tallied 30 assists on December 30, 1990. Porter also averaged a career high 16.2 ppg for the Nets in 1977–78.

Return to Detroit (1978–1979)

After the season, Porter was traded back to the Pistons, now led by coach

Dick Vitale Richard "Dick" John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadc ...

, in exchange for

Eric Money Eric Money (born February 6, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player. Amateur career A 6'0" guard out of Kettering High School in Detroit, Michigan, Money played alongside fellow future NBA players Lindsay Hairston and Conie ...

. In that

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

, he won his third assist title - 13.4 apg, including a remarkable 30 point-25 assist game, on March 9, 1979. Additionally he was the first player to record over 1,000 assists in a single season. It would be five years before another player would record over 1,000 assists. Porter appeared as a member of the Detroit team in the cult classic basketball film

The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh ''The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh'' is a 1979 American sports/fantasy comedy film directed by Gilbert Moses and coproduced by David Dashev and Gary Stromberg. It was produced by Lorimar and distributed by United Artists. The film was shot on lo ...

in 1979 alongside Pistons teammates

Bob Lanier Robert Jerry Lanier Jr. (September 10, 1948 – May 10, 2022) was an American professional basketball player. He played center (basketball), center for the Detroit Pistons and the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). L ...

John Shumate John Henry Shumate (April 6, 1952 – February 3, 2025) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Phoenix Suns, Buffalo Braves, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, San ...

Chris Ford Christopher Joseph Ford (January 11, 1949 – January 17, 2023) was an American professional basketball player and head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Mad Bomber", Ford played most of his NBA career on the D ...

, and

Leon Douglas Leon Douglas (born August 26, 1954) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He played seven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before transitioning to an extensive professional career overseas in Europe. ...

Return to the Bullets (1979–1983)

After that season, Porter signed as a veteran free agent with the Washington Bullets for 1979–80. The Detroit Pistons received a first round draft pick in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

(which ended up with Golden State, who selected

Rickey Brown Rickey Darnell Brown (born August 29, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player. At a height of tall, he played at the power forward and center positions. High school Brown attended and played high school basketball at West ...

with that pick) and a

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

first round pick (Used to select John Bagley) as compensation for his departure. Porter appeared in two playoff games that year and garnered nine assists as the Bullets fell in the first round. The following year, he had 9.1 assists per game, which was enough to win his final assist title. However, during training camp before the 1981 season, he snapped his

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

, missing all of that season. He only played 11 games of the next season, having only 4.2 assists per game. On January 18, 1983, he was waived by the Bullets. When he retired in 1983, he had accumulated 5,314 career assists (good for 49th all time) and 7,645 career points, while also being 14th all time in career assists per game and 13th in assist percentage at 37.5. Notably, of the top 50 in career assist leaders, he played the fewest games (659). Despite leading the league in assists per game four times, he was never selected to an All Star Game. Only five players have won more assists titles than Porter, and all five of them are in the Hall of Fame (

Stockton Stockton may refer to: Places Australia * Stockton, New South Wales * Stockton, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region New Zealand *Stockton, New Zealand United Kingdom * Stockton, Cheshire *Stockton, Norfolk * Stockton, Chi ...

, Cousy,

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, Nash and

Kidd Kidd may refer to: Places * Kidd (railway point), British Columbia, a former Canadian settlement * Kidd's Beach, a coastal town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa * Kidd Islands, Antarctic island grouping * Mount Kidd, a peak in the Canadian ...

Toyota Super Corollas (1983)

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

, Porter played in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

for the fabled

Toyota Super Corollas The Toyota Super Corollas were a multi-titled basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1984. Founded in 1975 by business and sportsman Dante Silverio, the team, formally named Toyota Athletic Club, was owned by ...

team in the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines, composed of twelve company-branded Franchising, franchise teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia ...

as an import during the

1983 PBA Reinforced Filipino Conference The 1983 PBA season, 1983 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Reinforced Filipino Conference was the second conference of the 1983 PBA season. It started on May 15 and ended on August 23, 1983. The tournament is an import-laden format, which r ...

tournament. He scored 50 points in his debut on May 17, 1983, in a 135–141 loss to Tanduay Rhum, but was let go after eight games.

Post playing career

While Porter was playing in the

, the head coaching job at Saint Francis University became available and

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

coach John Thompson recommended Porter for the job. Porter took over as the Saint Francis head coach on July 11, 1983. During his four seasons as the Saint Francis coach, Porter's record was 42-68 (.382). Porter then coached at

Central State University Central State University (CSU) is a public, historically black land-grant university in Wilberforce, Ohio, United States. It is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Established by the state legislature in 1887 as a two-y ...

, a historically black college in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, and then returned to his hometown Chicago, fulfilling a dream to become an elementary

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

teacher, helping at-risk children with after school programs. "I've been blessed. All I wanted was to be a fifth-grade teacher. That was my life. I wanted to be a teacher." Porter was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1976, the Cambria County Sports Hall of Fame in 1984 and the Saint Francis Athletics Hall of Fame in 2003. Porter is retired and lives in Chicago. In January 2022,

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

announcer

Glenn Consor Glenn Consor is a National Basketball Association (NBA) and NCAA basketball analyst and studio host who played collegiate and pro basketball. He was also an NBA scout, which led to his broadcasting career. He played professional basketball for ...

apologized to former

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

guard Kevin Porter Jr. when he commented that Porter "like his dad, pulled the trigger right at the right time", after Porter made a key shot, under the mistaken belief that Porter Jr. was the son of Kevin Porter, the former Washington point guard. The father of Kevin Porter Jr., Bryan Kevin Porter Sr., pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in a shooting death of a 14-year-old girl in 1993 and was sentenced to years in prison. Porter Sr. died in 2004 after being shot in a South

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

bar. Porter Jr. was 4 years old when his father was killed.

NBA player statistics

Regular season

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Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

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Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

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Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

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Playoffs

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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Kevin 1950 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball players from Chicago Baltimore Bullets (1963–1973) draft picks Baltimore Bullets (1963–1973) players Capital Bullets players College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Detroit Pistons players New Jersey Nets players Philippine Basketball Association imports Point guards Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball coaches Saint Francis Red Flash men's basketball players Toyota Super Corollas players Utah Stars draft picks Washington Bullets players

Amateur career

Professional career

Baltimore / Capital / Washington Bullets (1972–1975)

Detroit Pistons (1975–1977)

New Jersey Nets (1977–1978)

Return to Detroit (1978–1979)

Return to the Bullets (1979–1983)

Toyota Super Corollas (1983)

Post playing career

NBA player statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

See also

References

External links