McCollum doesnt only dispense advice. All-Star honors stick on a resume forever and he might be the best active player without those bragging rights. He is averaging 21.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.9 assists. The only thing holding CJ back from being an allstar is Dame. [75][76] In a March 2020 episode of the podcast, McCollum was recording when he received news that the NBA was suspending the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. CJ McCollum Christian James McCollum Twitter : CJMcCollum Instagram: 3jmccollum Position: Shooting Guard Shoots: Right 6-3 , 190lb (190cm, 86kg) Born: September 19 , 1991 in Canton, Ohio us More bio, uniform, draft, salary info 2015-16 Most Improved 3 3 SUMMARY 2022-23 Career G 52 642 PTS 21.1 19.4 TRB 4.3 3.5 AST 5.9 3.7 FG% 43.5 45.4 [74] It is co-hosted by ESPN analyst Jordan Schultz. I guess we got lucky. [19] In the season-opener on October 28, McCollum posted a career-high 37 points, scoring 22 of which in the first quarter alone, helping the Blazers defeat the New Orleans Pelicans, 11294. I just do my job. That lineup looked so active and disruptive together that Green almost has no choice but to consider using it more, especially if Valanciunas continues to sit with his calf issue. CJ McCollum on potentially making the All-Star game this year: "I get paid like an All-Star" 12 Jan 2023 03:28:42 [35] He set another career-high for points scored with 43 on January 1 during a 9589 win over the Timberwolves. McCollum evolved with the Pull-Up podcast and as a wine connoisseur, to name a few of his interests. [77], McCollum has been married to his college sweetheart Elise Esposito since October 27, 2020. On a contending Rockets team, Harden is one of the most popular players in the game and already a seven-time All-Star. But we just care about each other. [49] On December 12, he matched his season high with 40 points during a 9283 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. Over that span, Lillard averaged 45.1 points, 9.6 assists, and 5.5 rebounds on 53-53-88 splits (no, there are no typos there), with the sub-.500 Blazers needing every ounce of it to keep their fledgling postseason aspirations alive. He was a 201213 Senior CLASS Award finalist. Find out more. I am going to make shots and am going to help us win.. Jonas Valanciunas also missed Wednesdays game with a left calf contusion, and McCollum is playing through a thumb injury. In 2022, McCollum was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans, ending his nine year run with the Blazers. Or write about sports? And, as the old saying goes, the best ability is availability. Over the season, McCollum has averaged 21.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.0 steals, and 3.0 three-pointers on 43/40/79 shooting splits, providing some much-needed veteran leadership as well. A small-market team and a mid-major star: There's no more perfect union in the NBA. Shoots: 3 First Team All-Patriot League (20102012), 3 Patriot League All-Tournament team (20102012), Patriot League's all-time leading scorer (2361 points), Career statistics and player information from, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 03:34. The days and weeks to come wouldnt be as celebratory. [65], On December 7, 2021, McCollum was diagnosed with a pneumothorax and was ruled out indefinitely. "At first, it was weird," Lillard said after the 121-110 loss to New Orleans. [3] He played in 33 games, starting in 31, and averaged 19.1 points and 5 rebounds per game while shooting 45.9 percent from the field. CJ is big on that, backup point guard Jose Alvarado said. He scored 34 points in Mondays win over the Washington Wizards. He signed his rookie scale contract with the franchise on July 11,[13] and he proceeded to play for them in the NBA Summer League, averaging 21 points and 4 rebounds per game. Lillard helped bridge the gap between award-winning hip-hop artist and one of the faces of Adidas. 5. CJ McCollum was born on September 19, 1991, making him 28 years old as of 2019. CJ McCollum has made at least $147,980,107 playing professional basketball. [84], 20182022: Conference Finals and last years in Portland, Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 03:34, "Lehigh Mountain Hawks 2009 Player Commits", List of National Basketball Association career 3-point scoring leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career scoring leaders, "CJ McCollum Named Kia Most Improved Player", "Blazers send thanks to Aldridge, Matthews, Batum, and Lopez", "Patriot League Men's Basketball All-League Teams and Awards Announced", "201112 Men's Basketball All-Patriot League Teams and Major Awards Announced", "NCAA basketball: Lehigh pulls off monumental upset of Duke", "C.J. Among some highlights: The chemistry proved tangible. If its in Gods plan for it to happen, so be it, McCollum said. Gabor won zero championships. But Brandon Ingram turned out to be the most dominant figure in Moda Center Wednesday. The Pelicans coaching staff also showed the necessary desperation in the fourth quarter as they looked for answers to slow Lillard in the pick-and-roll. I get paid like an All-Star, McCollum said. While we're not even close to seeing who earns a spot on the annual squad, one player who has seemingly been on the fringes of the roster for years is Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum. The 31-year-old guard battled the flu and COVID-19 early this season. A consummate student of journalism, McCollum penned an article for Sporting News explaining why he opted to continue on with his education. Will Guillory is a staff writer for The Athletic, covering the New Orleans Pelicans. It is happy to see Lillard being a part of the All-star game a reserve, but we all would have loved seeing Anything and McCollum join their teammate in Atlanta on March 7. CJ McCollum was born on September 19, 1991. [36] In a game on January 13, a 115109 loss to the Orlando Magic, he posted 26 points to extended his streak of games with 25-plus points to eight in a row, the third-longest in Blazers' history (only Geoff Petrie with 11 and Clyde Drexler with 9 games have had longer among Blazers players. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. Then Ill enjoy a nice vacation with my wife. As such, he saw his minutes increase to 34.8 per contest, and he started in all 80 games that he played. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. [58] In the deciding Game 7, he scored a game-high 37 points in a 10096 win, including the game-sealing step back jumper with 15 seconds remaining, to help the Blazers advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2000. come on! The Thunder opened up a double-digit lead midway through the second and a 70.6 percent win probability at that before the Blazers star duo did what expectations suggested they should: This sequence by Damian Lillard is still iconic pic.twitter.com/yZfuiLLfWx. He picked apart every coverage the Blazers threw at him and turned in one of the most efficient scoring performances of his career. [18] For his sophomore season, he played 15.7 minutes per outing while averaging 6.8 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1 assist across 62 games. The fans obliged and the Pelicans saw out a 127-116 home win over the Philadelphia 76ers. From a group standpoint, the best of it came during Game One of the First Round of the 2017 Playoffs, in which Lillard and McCollum combined for 75 points, just shy of the record shared by Aldridge-Lillard and Drexler-Porter groupings. He just doesnt know if he will be there solely to take meetings as the president of the NBA Players Association or if his trip to Salt Lake City will serve a dual purpose. McCollum is still finding his rhythm since returning to the Trail Blazers lineup. Among players to log at least 500 games, McCollums 19.4 points per game scoring average ranks No. Here are a few factors that will affect his All Star chances next season. Like Lillard, McCollum compared the experience to playing against each other in scrimmages. We kind of had it in our back pocket. Dynamic duos dont survive nearly a full decade together without learning how to reach peak performance simultaneously. On Tuesday, the official NBA All-Star reserves list was released with just two weeks remaining before the game is set to take place. The two provided multiple avenues for which the fanbase could connect. As a freshman in 2005, he was considerably undersized, standing at only 5ft 2in (1.57m). When McCollum made his first visit back to Portland last March, Lillard was sidelined by season-ending surgery to repair an abdominal injury. For better or worse, there havent been many duos quite like them. McCollum: 'More Than Just a Basketball Player', "CJ McCollum Dream Center Opens at Blazers Boys & Girls Club", "Portland's CJ McCollum is a Silent Assassin on the Court and a Blooming Journalist Off of it", "NBA star CJ McCollum is keeping his hotel room a frigid temperature to create a wine cellar for the 84 bottles he ordered to the Disney bubble", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=CJ_McCollum&oldid=1140860142. [8], On November 25, 2012, McCollum scored 26 points in a 9177 win over Sacred Heart to pass Rob Feaster as the Patriot League's all-time leading scorer. As such, he has written articles concerning the NBA for various media outlets;[80] in one of his pieces, he interviewed the Commissioner of the league Adam Silver. [63], On December 26, 2020, McCollum scored a season-high 44 points, along with a game-winning three-pointer, in a 128126 overtime win against the Houston Rockets. After starting the game 5/8 from the three-point line, the Pelicans finished just 5/21. Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. McCollum began last season playing the best basketball of his life for the Portland Trail Blazers. McCollum scored a season-high 42 points to go along with a franchise-record 11 made three-pointers. It was the second time hes scored at least 40 points in a game without logging a turnover. I think we all care about each other, Alvarado said. New Orleans 10-year veteran guard CJ McCollum was sidelined during Mondays win at Oklahoma City due to a right ankle sprain, and is listed as questionable to play Wednesday against the Los Angeles Lakers. props to bro, he tried to stop B.I. When that swap with the Portland Trail Blazers was finalized on Feb. 8, New Orleans record was 22-32. 5 in games played (436) and No. Yet the closest McCollum's come to the All-Star courts were the 2016 and 2017 three-point contests. CJ McCollum is getting snubbed in the NBA All-Star Game fan vote. pic.twitter.com/xg2mvYWjBX. McCollum deserves the honor and has time to prove it this season. Describing life as a score-first backcourt, and how to manage when one player is hot, how to take a step back, and how they stacked up amongst NBA historys top backcourts. 'Felt like practice': Lillard, McCollum square off, 'Not going out this way': Nets, down 28, stun C's, Kerr touts 5-0 homestand: Dubs 'turned a corner', KD: Mavs tilt, Kyrie meeting 'just another game', Owner: Snyder, Fields will bring Hawks success, Isaac has surgery on adductor, done for season, Clips' Powell out at least a week to treat shoulder, LeBron to have tendon injury checked in 3 weeks. [59] Portland went on to lose the Conference Finals in a four-game sweep to the Warriors. [83], McCollum is a wine enthusiast. CJ McCollum is on Instagram at 3jmccollum. If I never make an All-Star Game man, I wont be sad about it because I know Im nice, and I know a lot of people respect my game, McCollum said. [76], On May 30, 2022, McCollum signed a multiplatform deal with ESPN to be an NBA analyst. I understand the work he puts in and he understands the work I put in, and we continue to empower each other., CJ McCollum says he doesnt care if he never makes an All-Star Game, heres why, McCollum looked like a bonafide All-Star before suffering a left mid-foot fracture that sidelined him for nearly two months.