CJ McCollum hasn’t established a true residence in New Orleans yet, living out of a downtown hotel over the past two-plus months since a trade from Portland. The 30-year-old is still awaiting the eventual arrival of his wife and newborn son (born Jan. 10), who’s not old enough for a cross-country flight.
Although McCollum may not be able to kick off his shoes and toss down his keys at a long-term address in the Crescent City, he still sounded like a longtime New Orleanian on Wednesday, after scoring 32 points and handing out seven assists in a play-in game victory over San Antonio. Based on recent interviews, it’s clear the nine-year veteran chose the Big Easy for the next chapter of his NBA career, after eight straight playoff berths with the Trail Blazers. A Pelicans fan base eager to wrap their arms around players who embrace their city gave McCollum several enormous ovations during Wednesday’s game, including as he walked to the locker room minutes after the 113-103 win.
“I’m at home. It’s my new home,” McCollum told ESPN sideline reporter Cassidy Hubbarth in a postgame interview. “I’m happy to be here. I’m thankful. I have a great opportunity to continue to get better, as a player, as a person, as a leader.”
New Orleans was already trending in the right direction at midseason, recovering nicely from a 3-16 start to get back into the Western Conference play-in race, but the Feb. 8 trade for McCollum elevated the Pelicans to another level. When McCollum and 2020 All-Star forward Brandon Ingram have both been in uniform since the All-Star break, New Orleans is 9-2.
With the season on the line Wednesday, McCollum made nine consecutive first-half shots from the field against the Spurs, one shy of his career high. Six of the 10 Pelicans who played in Wednesday’s game had never participated in the NBA postseason – including three rookies – but McCollum helped ease any potential nerves by pouring in 27 first-half points, staking New Orleans to an 11-point intermission advantage.
“I understood the magnitude of this game,” McCollum said, when asked about his approach to a new, pressure-filled situation for several teammates. “I tried to be aggressive.”
“He was great,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said. “He set the tone early. He understood the moment and it sort of calmed the rest of the guys down. We just got the ball to him and he made play after play, and the rest of the guys started to feed off CJ.”
A sellout crowd of 18,610 fans also fed off McCollum’s performance Wednesday, buzzing in anticipation every time he fired from three-point range or adeptly drove to the basket. McCollum generated one of the highest decibel levels in the Smoothie King Center in years when he sank a trail three-pointer late in the first half, running to the other baseline and gesturing toward the stands.
“This is the start of something special, for sure,” McCollum said of the Pelicans’ future in New Orleans. “You can see the energy, feel the energy. You can kind of feel the city is starting to be excited about basketball, as they should – there is a lot of talent here, we’re hungry, we’re playing the right way. And there is going to be a lot of winning in our future.
“I think this is indicative of the type of support we’ll have going forward. I’m happy about it, excited. Obviously we have to take care of business (Friday) in L.A. (against the Clippers), but when we get back here, I look forward to seeing more sellouts, and I’m sure the fans do. And we’ll reward them with a high level of play, a high level of energy, and leave it all out there on the court.”