Orlando Magic: Four Players to potentially target in an Aaron Gordon trade
By Seth Arora
Target 4: CJ McCollum
Why Him?
There is no indication CJ McCollum is on the trading block, only media speculation borne out of the Portland Trail Blazers’ slow start, though they have recently begun picking it up on the heels of signing Carmelo Anthony.
Perhaps the Blazers feel the same sense of stagnation with McCollum that Orlando may with Gordon: parties on both sides have reached their critical masses and it may simply be time for a change of scenery.
Why He Potentially Benefits Orlando
There is a theme here: He can score.
McCollum has had a slow start to the season, like the Blazers as a whole, but he is starting to round into shape. He is another bona fide scorer, a three-point threat and someone who creates headaches for defenses with his ability to break down defenses and hit mid-range shots as well.
He would represent a massive scoring upgrade to Orlando’s backcourt.
McCollum is one of the league’s best at creating space for pull-up jumpers, hits the “tightly”-defended (defender 2-4 feet away) and open shots he often gets, and is a savage from the mid-range.
Plain and simple, McCollum is a threat for two or more points every time he touches the ball and when he is not scoring, he usually is not hurting the team. McCollum is skilled cutting off the ball that teams always have to account for his presence.
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Bottom line: When he has the ball, there is a very good chance that’s two or three more points for his team. When he does not, the defense still has to know where he is.
He is not known as a defensive stalwart, though Second Spectrum indicates he forces opponents to shoot 37.8 percent from the field against him. McCollum also hustles for loose balls and puts in the effort, something that is not a given that Steve Clifford and the team would embrace.
Why He Is a Risk
With his play this season, Markelle Fultz has emerged as arguably the team’s sole can’t-be-taught playmaker. His feel for the game is natural, and it would be ideal to pair him with a scoring playmaker who can stretch the court while also making his teammates better. McCollum, as talented of a scorer as he is, is not as gifted of a playmaker as the Magic may need.
For the Blazers, the passing component of their playmaking seems to fall at Damian Lillard‘s feet. When McCollum gets the ball, he often shoots.
While this often leads to good things for the Blazers, a less-than-willing passer could potentially create questions of fit for Orlando. Of course, that can easily be explained away as being one of the tenets of the Blazers’ offense rather than McCollum specifically refusing to make the right play.
While McCollum is a gifted offensive player and a willing defender, he is in year one of a five-year deal that will wind up paying him more than $35 million by 2024.
He is entering his prime now but the most successful organizations in the NBA factor in the future ramifications of all of their transactions. Gordon is on a team-friendly and very tradeable contract — McCollum’s deal may not look that way within a few years.