By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Media Relations
On the night of April 29, Lehigh men’s basketball alumnus C.J. McCollum ’13 was the talk of the NBA. In a must-win Game 5 against Memphis, he scored a career-high 33 points to keep his Portland Trail Blazers in the game until the very end. McCollum, who was trending on Twitter, scored his 33 points on 12-of-20 shooting, including 7-of-11 from three-point range.
“I started to play like myself again,” said McCollum, when asked about his play down the stretch of the regular season and playoffs. “I played in crunch time. I figured if I’d go out, I’d go out playing my way, being aggressive, trying to make plays and create shots for myself and my teammates.”
That mentality showed, especially in Games 3, 4 and 5 when he combined for 77 points on 28-of-46 shooting and 11-of-17 from three-point range.
McCollum struggled in the first two games of the first-round series, but like he’s done many times before, C.J. continued to battle. He responded nicely when the going got tough.
“I didn’t play so well in the first two games, but I had some great looks in the playoffs and I knew once I saw the ball go in, I’d be fine,” he said.
McCollum was better than “fine” from March 20 onward; he was a key contributor for a Western Conference power. April 29 was perhaps a fitting ending, a culmination of McCollum’s second NBA season, which was highlighted by tremendous growth, both on and off the court.
Sports have a funny way of working. McCollum’s senior season at Lehigh and beginning of his NBA career were hampered by injuries, but he didn’t back down. After another injury early in his second season, it was a banged up Portland roster which gave him the opportunity he needed as winter turned into spring and the playoff race heated up in the NBA. Spring began on March 20, the day he scored 15 points at Orlando to begin a stretch of 13 double-figure point efforts in his final 20 games.
“As the season went on, I got more comfortable,” said McCollum. “I think it’s a credit to hard work, the time put in and continuing to put in work on an individual basis. That work translates into games. More opportunities down the stretch allowed me to see more time and I tried to take advantage. I became more confident and the game slowed down a little.”
Injuries have only reinforced to McCollum that he won’t play basketball forever, so he’s continued to build his resume off the court as a journalist. Following Lehigh’s historic win over Duke in the 2012 NCAA Tournament, McCollum’s stock was sky high. The Journalism major entered the NBA Draft as a junior, but after exploring his options, decided to return to Lehigh to finish his degree. He even detailed his reasoning in the Sporting News article “Why I’m returning to Lehigh for my senior year,” highlighting his degree as the primary reason for returning.
That degree has already paid off. Last week, McCollum was at the NBA Draft, doing his radio show, writing for the Players’ Tribune and more. McCollum worked the NBA Finals as well, interviewing the likes of Klay Thompson and Draymond Green of Golden State to Matthew Dellavedova and Tristan Thompson of Cleveland for the NBA and its Facebook page. The interviews were received exceptionally well.
McCollum has already made a name for himself as a journalist. His reputation is so strong the NBA came to him with the NBA Finals opportunity.
“They talked to my agency and said I was one of the guys they wanted to officially interview players,” said McCollum. “I had the background and I had interviewed the deputy commissioner and a number of other people (in the past). I went out to Game 1 out in Oakland and went to some shootarounds as well.”
McCollum is savoring these opportunities and doing them for the right reasons. As he posted on his Instagram on the night of Game 1, “Enjoying my first NBA finals experience doing some behind the scenes interviews for the NBA, International Media and Facebook Live! Keeping my Journalism degree alive, while living the dream. Interviewing Bron and Dray today on Facebook live.”
McCollum’s work hasn’t gone unnoticed by people back at Lehigh.
“C.J. has continued to grow and apply his academic background even though he’s really focused as an athlete,” said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. “He has continued to demonstrate his thirst for preparation, for life after basketball and the utilization of all the things that he learned in the classroom.”
There’s two-way communication between C.J. and his agency, which helped set up McCollum’s radio show with Sirius XM NBA Radio (which has been a big success).
“I want to keep my degree alive and stay sharp with the things I’ve worked on over the course of my college and professional careers,” he said. “My agency presents opportunities to me and I present different ideas to them. I’m just trying to sharpen my resume and take advantage of the whole summer.
“You can only work out so much,” he continued. “You have to find hobbies to keep yourself sharp. I enjoy doing the shows and the analysis.”
McCollum wrote previews for the Eastern and Western Conference Finals for the Players Tribune, breaking down and analyzing the two series. An X factor McCollum identified was J.R. Smith, who proceeded by scoring a playoff career-high 28 points.
Bringing strong journalistic abilities and basketball IQ to the table, McCollum has become a hot commodity. The Canton, Ohio native credits his foundation to his time at Lehigh.
“Lehigh did a great job of preparing me with a heavy course load and different experiences, doing an internship with Lehighsports.com which has helped,” said McCollum. “Getting the experience, writing the articles and doing the recaps was beneficial, so once I got to the NBA, I was able to tell stories about coming from a small school. I’m trying to take advantage of opportunities and use some of the tools and skills I learned from Lehigh and convert them over to the working world.”
While he grew as a journalist at Lehigh, McCollum’s basketball foundation was enhanced just as much. The aggressive mentality Trail Blazers’ fans saw into the playoffs was cultivated at Lehigh.
“C.J. was in a wonderful situation here at Lehigh where he was able to continue growing his game,” said Reed. “You could see him playing with confidence, you could see him playing aggressively. A lot of those attributes were built at Lehigh and became a strong part of his game. Because of that, he was confident and comfortable when playoff opportunities presented themselves.”
McCollum’s success went far beyond his 33 points in Game 5 of the playoff series. He averaged 25.7 points over the final three playoff games, averaged 15.6 points in April and reached double-figure points in 10 of his final 13 games.
Now, McCollum is focused on continued improvement for a Portland team that has been near the top of the tough Western Conference in each of his first two seasons.
“I’m approaching this summer like I do any other summer,” he said. “It’s a big year for us (the Trail Blazers). I want to control what I can control and become a better player for the team. I definitely look forward to the opportunity, with the increased role this year, to become an even better player. Come back a better shooter and the game should slow down for me even more.”
McCollum would have never had the opportunity late in the season if he approached his many setbacks (most notably, injuries) with a poor mindset.
“I was really pleased that C.J. had the right mentality of continuing to prepare himself, maintaining a high level of confidence, so when an opportunity presented itself, he was physically, emotionally and mentally ready to produce,” said Reed. “As the playoffs indicated, with his strong performance, he was doing all those things.”
McCollum continues to make Lehigh and Patriot League fans proud.
“Every time I step on the court, it’s an opportunity to represent Lehigh and the Patriot League to the fullest, and give back,” he said. “Lehigh and the Patriot League are known for academics. There are people who end up working for high-end companies in New York, New Jersey, around the East Coast and world. But to be a professional athlete coming from Lehigh, it’s definitely built camaraderie. It’s a blessing to be able to represent Lehigh and the Patriot League.”
McCollum’s impact still resonates within the program today. The present-day Mountain Hawks finished last season in third place in the league standings and returns the Patriot League’s Player and Rookie of the Year in 2015-16. Hopes are high for the upcoming campaign.
“Seeing a Lehigh alum in a successful position always helps our program,” said Reed. “We have countless examples of business professionals who set that example for our incoming and current basketball players. Now, we have another wonderful example of an alum who is not only excelling athletically, but also excelling utilizing his journalism skills.”
McCollum is a perfect role model, that prototypical student-athlete everyone strives to become.
“I think C.J. is a great illustration of the true balance between being a student and an athlete in your collegiate experience,” said Reed. “Because he approached both roles effectively, he is more than prepared for what lies ahead.”
Without the experiences learned at Lehigh, on and off the court, McCollum likely wouldn’t be an emerging NBA star and without McCollum’s impact on the program, the Mountain Hawks wouldn’t be in as strong a position as they are today.
“Lehigh has helped me a lot,” said McCollum. “Obviously, Lehigh is a prestigious university where academics is a priority. The way I was raised was to always think one step ahead and prepare for life after basketball. I hope to have a very long, lucrative, productive career, but you want to continue to be smart and plan ahead. Keep working on pieces I can work on in the summertime, if the opportunities present themselves.
“I am very thankful for the academic and athletic opportunities at Lehigh. I look at it as not only representing myself, but also where I come from.”
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