Portland Trail Blazers: It’s time for a discussion on C.J. McCollum’s legacy
Portland Trail Blazers’ guard CJ McCollum is one of the more recognizable faces to never make an All-Star Game. However, his legacy can’t be ignored.
Think back for just a second: what’s the first memory you have of Portland Trail Blazers star guard CJ McCollum? Five consecutive seasons of cold-blooded 20-point averages organically guarantees that there’s at least something on the mind. If he hasn’t put someone on your favorite team into the “Law and Order: C.J. Victims Unit,” he’s twisted the knife with a game-winner, led the charge to an underdog win; like a fancy buffet, he’s got something for everyone at the table.
Chicago’s All-Star Weekend came and went, offering enough memories for a lifetime. But with no on-court Portland Trail Blazer representation, I often found myself trailing back to watch highlights of the past. The Dame stepbacks; the CJ shakes; the Carmelo jabs. In watching CJ McCollum specifically, there was one thought, ironically, that couldn’t be shaken.
There’s a real chance McCollum enjoys the career with the respect and fear from his peers as an all-time great scorer, enough highlights for three careers, and the accolades — or lack thereof — of a player most fans might shake from memory a few decades down the line.
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And as a fan of the C.J. Special Victims Unit, I’d deem that an especially heinous crime; a vicious felony.
Is it too early to begin those “legacy” talks? That’s for no one man to judge. But here’s what we do know: by the time the 2021-22 season gets underway, McCollum will be 30 years old.
Given the talent crop in the Western Conference, it feels unlikely that those within the NBA circle show him love now of all of times. Some players — McCollum and his fellow superstar teammate Damian Lillard in particular — have led one to believe that there was no cap to their on-court mortality. But an encore through the trenches of the Western Conference Playoffs looks to be an especially uphill climb this time around.
For the fans focused on with larger markets and Sports Center dunks, this was especially important, since the Portland Trail Blazers quickly became the team to watch.
All of that provides some background into the discussion no one has put much into, well, discussing. If he never gains that admiration worldwide, it’s high time someone at least brought these aspects to the conversation. This is by no means a Hall of Fame case, but rather, a closer glance into what McCollum’s legacy is, even with only a single NBA trophy in the case. As Steve Zirnkilton of Law and Order would (almost) say, “These are his stories. (Dun dunn).”