REPORT: Miami Heat Interested In Guard Kevin Porter Jr.

The Miami Heat have not gotten off to the hottest of starts this season after an active offseason set expectations high. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo have had noticeable chemistry issues and the team has lost close games to teams that they should beat. However, the team is slowly starting to put it together, having won three of their last five games.

It is early in the season but the rumors are already starting to heat up about potential additions to the roster. Miami has reportedly been monitoring Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving. However, Dallas has made it clear they do not plan on moving Irving this season. So, Miami must pivot to Plan B if they were to target another guard via trade although there is a guard currently sitting in free agency who the Heat are reportedly interested in.

NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported this week that the Heat are one team interested in free agent guard Kevin Porter Jr. The top priority for the Heat has reportedly been their search for another dynamic guard. Irving was at the top of the list but with Dallas adamant about holding onto him, it isn't a crazy idea to look at current free agent guards who can make an impact.

Porter, 26, has been a rather polarizing player throughout his career thus far. He was a five-star recruit out of high school and joined the USC Trojans for his lone collegiate season in 2018. However, his off-the-court issues began under coach Andy Enfield when he was suspending indefinitely mid-way through the season for "personal conduct issues." He played the last couple of games for USC before entering the draft and being selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the last pick of the first round in the 2019 draft.

He was not very impactful throughout his rookie campaign and before his sophomore season, he was charged with improper handling of a firearm in a vehicle. He would not play for Cleveland again and was dealt to the Houston Rockets, where he saw much higher usage and broke out as one of the team's leading scorers. In 2022, he inked a four-year, $82.5 million contract extension with Houston despite his tenure there also being plagued with more off-the-court issues as he was involved in multiple altercations with teammates and coaches. He was charged with domestic violence in 2023 and then traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder and immediately waived.

A couple years since, he seems to have slightly rehabilitated his image. He put up some of the best numbers of his career last year with the Milwaukee Bucks, averaging 17.4 points, 7.4 assists and 5.2 rebounds in 38 games. He was waived prior to the start of the season and the Heat could definitely take a chance on him to add a scorer in the backcourt opposite Davion Mitchell.