CJ McCollum American Basketball Player Born 1991 in Canton

CJ McCollum, full name Christian James McCollum, is an American basketball player who plays shooting guard. He was born on 19 September 1991 in Canton, Ohio. He played college basketball at Lehigh University and has spent his NBA career with the Portland Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans, Washington Wizards and Atlanta Hawks. He also hosts a podcast and works as a broadcaster.

Early life

McCollum grew up in Canton and attended GlenOak High School, graduating in 2009. He was small for his age as a freshman, standing about 1.57 metres, yet he still played on the varsity team. A growth spurt over the next two years helped him attract the attention of college recruiters. He scored 54 points in his first game as a junior, a school and Stark County record, and averaged 29.3 points a game in his final season. He finished as the school's leading scorer with 1,405 career points and was named Gatorade Ohio Player of the Year for 2008-09.

He then enrolled at Lehigh University, where he studied journalism and graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts.

Career

At Lehigh, McCollum averaged 19.1 points as a freshman in 2009-10 and led all first-year players in the country in scoring. He was the first player in Patriot League history to be named both Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year in the same season. He took Lehigh to the 2010 NCAA tournament, and in 2012 he scored 30 points as the school beat Duke 75-70 for its first win in the NCAA Division I tournament. He chose to stay for his senior year rather than leave early for the NBA. On 25 November 2012 he became the Patriot League's all-time leading scorer, and he finished with 2,361 points. A broken left foot ended his final season in January 2013.

The Portland Trail Blazers picked him tenth overall in the 2013 NBA draft, making him the first Lehigh player to enter the league. He made his debut on 8 January 2014. In 2015-16, after several of Portland's starters left, he moved into the starting lineup alongside Damian Lillard and averaged 20.8 points over 80 games. He and Lillard became the first Blazers backcourt in which both players averaged at least 20 points. On 31 January 2018 he scored 50 points against the Chicago Bulls in only three quarters, including a franchise-record 28 in the first quarter.

In the 2019 playoffs, McCollum scored 41 points in a quadruple-overtime win against Denver and 37 in the deciding seventh game, sending Portland to its first Western Conference Finals since 2000. The Blazers were swept by the Warriors in that round.

On 8 February 2022 he was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. On 30 December 2022 he made 11 three-pointers in a game, a Pelicans franchise record. He matched his career high of 50 points on 3 January 2025 against the Washington Wizards. He was traded to the Wizards in a deal completed on 6 July 2025, and on 25 November that year he scored 46 points with 10 three-pointers against Atlanta. On 9 January 2026 he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in an exchange that sent Trae Young the other way, and the Hawks finished 46-36 and reached the playoffs. He signed a one-year extension with the club on 22 June 2026.

Recognition

McCollum was named Patriot League Player of the Year in 2010 and 2012, and won the league's Rookie of the Year award in 2010. He earned First Team All-Patriot League honours three times and was the 2012 conference tournament MVP. In the NBA he won the Most Improved Player Award in 2016.

Public roles

On 7 August 2021 McCollum was elected president of the National Basketball Players Association, succeeding Chris Paul, and he held the post until 2025. He hosts a weekly podcast, Pull Up with CJ McCollum, produced by Cadence13 and co-hosted by Jordan Schultz. In May 2022 he signed a multiplatform agreement with ESPN to work as an NBA analyst.

Personal life

McCollum married Elise Esposito on 27 October 2020. His older brother, Errick, is also a professional basketball player. He has written about the NBA for various outlets, and in 2016 he opened the CJ McCollum Dream Center at the Blazers Boys and Girls Club. He also runs an initiative called CJ's Press Pass, which gives aspiring journalists access to postgame news conferences. He has a wine label, McCollum Heritage 91, named for the street he grew up on and his birth year.