Former Syracuse Player Chris McCullough Traded To NBA’s Wizards
By Neil Adler
The NBA trade deadline has resulted in a former Syracuse basketball player ending up in a new location. Here’s the details and what it could mean.
Welcome to the nation’s capital, Chris McCullough!
The Brooklyn Nets have dealt the former Orange one-and-done guy, along with forward Bojan Bogdanovic, to my hometown Washington Wizards in exchange for forward Andrew Nicholson, guard Marcus Thornton and a 2017 protected first-round draft pick according to NBA.com.
McCullough, a 6-9 forward, suited up for SU in the 2014-15 campaign, but he only played in 16 games before a knee injury suffered against Florida State forced him to have surgery. That ended his ‘Cuse career, as McCullough declared early for the 2015 NBA Draft. Brooklyn then selected him with the 29th pick in the first round.
When McCullough came to Central New York, he held tons of potential, representing one of head coach Jim Boeheim’s highest-ranked recruits in years. ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com all labeled him as a five-star prospect, and he was generally considered a top-25 recruit nationally.
At the time of his injury, McCullough ranked fourth on the SU roster in scoring at 9.3 points per
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contest, and third in rebounds at 6.9 a game, according to Cuse.com. He was one of 22 candidates on the 2015 Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year watch list, Cuse.com says.
Since turning pro, McCullough has averaged 3.9 points and 2.2 boards in 11.4 minutes of action, according to a statement put out by the Wizards.
This season to date, he had appeared in 14 games with the Nets, collecting 2.5 points and 1.2 rebounds. But McCullough has flourished with the D-League’s Long Island Nets, scoring 18.1 points and grabbing 7.7 boards in 31 contests to earn 2017 D-League All-Star honors.
"“We feel Chris is an intriguing prospect as a first-round pick who was recently named a D-League All-Star,” Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld said in the team’s press release. “He has high potential and we look forward to our staff continuing his development.”"
The 6-8 Bogdanovic, averaging a career-high 14 points, three rebounds and one and a half assists this season, is likely to become the Wizards new sixth man, according to The Washington Post and other media reports. Washington has one of the most-productive starting five in the NBA, but the squad wanted to boost the offensive output from its reserves, and landing Bogdanovic should definitely help.
"Said Grunfeld: “Bojan is a very good shooter and a talented overall scorer whose versatility gives us an added dimension as we gear up for the stretch run. He is a proven starter that will provide us an added boost off the bench and allow us to be creative with our lineups.”"
Bogdanovic and McCullough head from the Nets, which are 9-47 and last in the Eastern Conference, to a Wizards group that is among the hottest outfits in the league. Currently, Washington sports a 34-21 mark, good for third place in the Eastern Conference.
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Whether or not McCullough gets any run with the Wizards in the near future, he’s moving to a team with a much-brighter outlook. Congrats, Chris, and I hope to see you in action soon!