After returning from his one-game suspension, Kevin Porter Jr. was involved in another controversy with the Houston Rockets. This time, however, he didn’t do anything bad. In fact, he drained a buzzer-beater and sent everyone into a frenzy, except the Washington Wizards.
He made a big impression on everyone watching last night’s game, even on one Wizards broadcaster who picked some unfortunate words to describe Porter Jr.’s incredible play to call game.
After he gave the Rockets the 114-111 win over the Wizards, this announcer used a terrible analogy to talk about KPJ’s shot, sparking plenty of reactions around the league.
“You’ve got to give credit. Kevin Porter Jr., like his dad, pulled that trigger right at the right time,” Wizards broadcaster Glenn Consor said on-air after Porter’s shot gave Washington a 114-111 win.
“Kevin Porter Jr., like his dad, pulled that trigger right at the right time”
I can’t believe this was actually said on the Wizards broadcast.. Completely inexcusable. pic.twitter.com/bZcWEVqPOP
— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA) January 6, 2022
This was a terrible choice of words for Mr. Consor since Kevin’s father had a history with gun violence and was shot dead when the guard was 4 years old, as Analis Bailey and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today write:
Porter Jr.’s father, Bryan Kevin Porter Sr., pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in a shooting death of a 14-year-old girl in 1993. He was sentenced to 4 1/2 years in prison. Porter Sr. died in 2004 after being shot in a South Seattle bar. The Rocket’s star was 4 years old when his father was killed.
Consor’s comment was met by backlash on social media, and it’s possible he confused a former NBA player with Porter Jr.’s father. Kevin Porter, now 72 and not the father of the Rockets’ Porter Jr., played in the NBA for a decade after being drafted by the Baltimore Bullets in 1972.
It could also be confusion, as they write, but that could also mean Consor wasn’t prepared enough to talk about Porter and other details about his life. The NBA community didn’t take long to react to those words and even LeBron James had something to say about Consor, calling him out on Twitter.
“Oh he thought this was cool huh!!?? Nah we ain’t going for this! Sorry but this ain’t going to fly! How insensitive can you be to say something like this. Beat it man! I pray for you but there’s no place in our beautiful game for you!”
Oh he thought this was cool huh!!?? Nah we ain’t going for this! Sorry but this ain’t going to fly! How insensitive can you be to say something like this. Beat it man! I pray for you but there’s no place in our beautiful game for you! https://t.co/UgVOBUOsPK
— LeBron James (@KingJames) January 6, 2022
Consor responded to all the backlash with a statement on social media, admitting he thought Porter Jr. was the son of a former Wizards player.
“Please allow me to take this opportunity to sincerely apologize to Kevin Porter Jr., his family and the Rockets organization for the comments I made during last night’s game,” Consor wrote. “I mistakenly thought Kevin was the son of former Washington player Kevin Porter and was unaware that the words I choose to describe the game-winning shot would be in any way hurtful or insensitive. I have reached out to Kevin to personally apologize and hope to be able to talk with him soon.”
I want to sincerely apologize to Kevin Porter Jr and clarify last night’s call. pic.twitter.com/UweFhFnkbt
— Glenn Consor (@glennconsor) January 6, 2022
This could have been avoided with a little research. Without the dark background, that phrase could have been great, but Consor made a mistake and received a lot of criticism for that. Fortunately, he took responsibility for his words and reached out to the player.
Porter Jr. has been involved in controversy recently. First, he threw an object at a Rockets assistant coach and left the arena in the middle of a game. He was suspended for that behavior and returned to action in a great way. Still, when people thought that was the end of everything, Consor gave people a new topic of discussion.
