{"id":558741,"date":"2026-01-24T23:25:22","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T23:25:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/558741\/"},"modified":"2026-01-24T23:25:22","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T23:25:22","slug":"dude-is-seven-foot-he-transitioned-michael-porter-jr-on-former-four-star-recruit-now-living-as-a-woman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/558741\/","title":{"rendered":"“Dude is seven foot… He transitioned” – Michael Porter Jr. on former four-star recruit now living as a woman"},"content":{"rendered":"

These days, Michael Porter Jr.<\/a> is delivering All-Star-level production with the Brooklyn Nets. The skilled 6’10\u2019\u2019 forward \u2014 now the centerpiece of his own team \u2014 is finally proving that his extraordinary high school promise wasn\u2019t simply a fluke.<\/p>\n

But not everyone from that class made it \u2014 the starkest contrast being Zach Brown.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Porter Jr., 27, admitted he recently became curious about Brown, who was such a dominant presence in high school. But one Google search, as the former recently recounted on the \u201cBall in the Family\u201d podcast, revealed something he certainly didn\u2019t expect \u2014 a mugshot of the once-promising big man that revealed Brown had transitioned.<\/p>\n

Once unstoppable<\/p>\n

As a freshman in Miami, Brown, now living as Jessica Turbery, already stood seven feet tall, posting unbelievable numbers.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

According to reports at the time, the four-star recruit averaged 18 points, 16 rebounds, and nearly seven blocks per game as a freshman. By sophomore season, those numbers even climbed to 19 points, 17 rebounds and almost nine blocks.<\/p>\n

Averaging nearly a triple-double is something most can only dream of, whether at that lower stage or the pro level. As a result, Brown earned invitations to elite camps and played, according to Porter, at \u201call the camps,\u201d including the McDonald\u2019s All-American Game.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was, like, the number three or number four center in our class. Seven foot. A couple years passed by. I get on Google or something, and it just \u2014 he had a mugshot, but he, like, fully transitioned. Dude is seven foot, bro. He transitioned, dog. Like, he\u2019s, like, a woman now. I seen it, like, \u2019cause I thought he\u2019d be really good, right?\u201drecalled<\/a> the 2023 NBA champion with the Denver Nuggets.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Related: “She told me to work on a postnup” – Juanita Vanoy shocked her lawyer by marrying Michael Jordan without a prenup<\/a><\/p>\n

An NBA future that unraveled<\/p>\n

By all accounts \u2014 and Porter Jr. certainly believed it himself \u2014 Brown seemed on the way to the big league, with prominent basketball programs, UConn, showing interest. Another article says Brown was once ranked in the top 30 by some recruiting sites.<\/p>\n

Things, however, turned out very differently.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, Brown\u2019s journey after signing with St. John fell flat due to a series of setbacks, including multiple transfers, on-campus clashes and legal issues. One of the more serious incidents included arrests for robbery and fraud, costing Brown several college offers.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Nowadays, Porter Jr. \u2014 whose strong performances in the 2025\u201326 NBA season find him in trade talks, possibly to a fringe contender like the Golden State Warriors \u2014 says Turbery doesn\u2019t play ball anymore.<\/p>\n

If the game of basketball didn\u2019t work out the way it once seemed, one can at least hope Turbery has found happiness in her new identity.<\/p>\n

LiAngelo Ball echoed that sentiment during the segment of the interview, saying, \u201cMan, live your truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: When an ex-NBA player admitted he cheated on his childhood sweetheart 341 times<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Basketball Network<\/a> on Jan 24, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court<\/a> section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"These days, Michael Porter Jr. is delivering All-Star-level production with the Brooklyn Nets. The skilled 6’10\u2019\u2019 forward \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":558742,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3],"tags":[7,247,187,164,76244,562,6,76243],"class_list":{"0":"post-558741","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-brooklyn-nets","10":"tag-denver-nuggets","11":"tag-golden-state-warriors","12":"tag-jessica-turbery","13":"tag-michael-porter-jr","14":"tag-nba","15":"tag-zach-brown"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/115952662919676260","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=558741"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558741\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/558742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=558741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=558741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=558741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}