Former Lehigh men’s basketball star and current Portland Trail Blazers guard C.J. McCollum, ’13, has emerged as one of the elite shooting guards in the NBA. Despite being left off this year’s All-Star team, McCollum has been selected to compete in the Three-Point Contest on All-Star Saturday Night.
This will be McCollum’s second appearance in the competition, but it’s the first time he was invited as a first option. Last year, McCollum was a late injury replacement the night before the competition and was eliminated in the preliminary round.
After garnering the NBA’s Most Improved Player award last year, McCollum has continued his growth in production, as he’s statistically having a better year his 2015-16 campaign. The 2013 first-round pick is averaging 23.4 points per game, which ranks 14th in the NBA, to go along with a 3-point shooting percentage of 42.3. McCollum is also averaging 3.6 rebounds and assists per game.
According to the NBA’s official site, the Three-Point Contest is a two-round, timed competition in which five shooting locations are positioned around the 3-point arc. The players have one minute to shoot as many as the 25 balls as they can. The three competitors with the highest scores in the first round advance to the championship round.
McCollum will look to dethrone Golden State Warriors star and defending champion Klay Thompson. Another notable star McCollum will compete against is Cleveland Cavaliers’ point guard Kyrie Irving. The two-time Patriot League Player of the Year will look to become the first Trail Blazers player ever to win the event.
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