When Fates Collide: The Paths of Wesley Matthews and CJ McCollum

Monday, January 18, 2016

John Stupak of GoLocalPDX Partner Site Oregon Sports News

CJ McCollum

The date is January 6, 2016. Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum is left off the teams’ active roster, the result of an accidental “clerical” error, which left Portland surprised and confused for most of its game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Clippers coach Doc Rivers was all too happy to comply with NBA rules, even though he didn’t have to, and leave McCollum off the Blazers roster for a crucial game against a Western Conference power. That decision led to this now classic exchange between Rivers and McCollum after the game.

McCollum, arguably Portland’s second best player and one of Portland’s most prolific scorers, was left to wear street clothes for the duration of the game. It was a move that left fans scratching their heads and almost certainly doomed the Blazers before the game even began. As I watched all of this unfold, I wondered if anyone saw this happening a year ago. Would this blunder by the Blazers, leaving McCollum off the roster, have caused anywhere near the commotion in 2015 as it did now in 2016? A year ago, would anyone have noticed if McCollum was left off the active list? Or cared?

Rewind to March 4, 2015. McCollum was playing behind both Wesley Matthews and Arron Afflalo, who was acquired late in the season from the Denver Nuggets to deepen Portland’s second unit that struggled to score when the majority if its the starters were off the court.

It was Matthews who was the star shooting guard for Portland. An undrafted diamond in the rough, Matthews became the defining characteristic of a team that refused to quit. When the Blazers signed him to a five-year deal worth $34 million in 2010, after just one year with the Utah Jazz, many believed it was too steep a price to pay for such raw and unproven talent. Matthews proved his critics wrong, displaying the chip on his shoulder that continues to define and better his career. He became a deadly offensive weapon, a three-point marksman, a tenacious defender, and one of the most durable players in the league. Matthews proved to be a bargain while quickly becoming a fan favorite.

Meanwhile, McCollum was barely able to get off the bench for Portland. He recorded a DNP for the fourth straight game as Portland was making a push for the playoffs. In what seems like another time and place, or a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man, McCollum was still fairly untested as he pushed through recovering from injuries and playing various minutes on the court. He seemed to play with guarded confidence when he did get a chance to hit the court, as many players do when their role on a team is as undefined and uncertain as McCollum’s was. CJ was averaging just six points in around 15 minutes of playing time as he struggled to find continuity in both minutes and quality of play. But, fortunes have a funny way of turning, even when those fortunes are the product of something disastrous.

Wesley Matthews

A day later, In what may have been the single worst moment of Portland’s 2014-‘15 campaign, Matthews went down on a non-contact injury. When it happened, we all knew what it was; though we hoped for the best. It wasn’t long before the worst of fears were realized; the Iron Man, the heart and soul of the Blazers, was down for the count.

When Matthews went down with an Achilles injury, it changed the fortunes and identity of an entire franchise. But it would also lead to one the best stories of 2016; the rise of CJ McCollum. But, what if Matthews never goes down with a season ending injury? Where would McCollum be today? Still trying to find his place on the second unit? Still struggling for minutes? Certainly, he would not be a key component to one of the most lethal guard combos in the league today. Certainly, he would not be the lock he is today to win most improved player, not just for the Blazers, but for the entire NBA. Less than year later, McCollum has already made us forget about the Matthews injury, and that is the best thing he has done for this city, because it says an awful lot about the play and personality of Portland’s newest favorite son that isn’t named Damian Lillard.

McCollum’s ascent was not instantaneous, however. It was Afflalo who moved into the starting lineup after Matthews went down. For the remainder of the season, McCollum continued to struggle. His best game came about a month after the Matthews injury when he came off the bench to put up 27 points against the Los Angeles Lakers. That may have been the beginning of a turning point for CJ has he continued to average double figures in points for the remainder of the season.

McCollum was inserted into the starting lineup for Game 1 of the first round of the 2015 playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies. However, he recorded only 2 points, making a measly 1 of 8 from the field. It wasn’t until Game 3 in Portland that McCollum began to shine. He scored 26 points that night, 18 in Game 4 before hitting a high of 33 points in Game 5, which would also be Portland’s last as they were eliminated by the Grizzlies. Many wondered if what we saw from McCollum during those last three games would carry over into the next season; many wondered if what we saw was simply a matter of defenses not seeing McCollum often enough to know how to guard him or if we were seeing the real McCollum for the first time.

Fast forward to 2016. McCollum is playing nearly 35 minutes a game and averaging almost 21 points. He has all but put away fears that the 2015 playoffs were a fluke. He and Lillard are putting together one of the best backcourts in the league and their numbers together are not far from where Lillard and Matthews were at their peak last season. In fact, Lillard and McCollum per game averages exceed in many categories of what Lillard and Matthews were averaging last season. While McCollum may not have the defensive tenacity of Matthews, and not many do, he is much better at scoring around the rim than Matthews was. Matthews always provided some panic attacks on fast-breaks, but McCollum’s ability to finish around the rim has lessened the intake of Pepto-Bismol on breakaway opportunities.

The Matthews injury provided an opportunity for McCollum that few professional athletes have navigated successfully; to grab hold of a moment when so much seems lost and make a lasting, positive outcome from all the negatives. There are few examples of players arising from the ashes of another’s unfortunate injury and changing the course of franchises along with them. The most notable might be during the 2001 NFL season, when New England Patriots star quarterback Drew Bledsoe went down with an injury, paving the way for Tom Brady to go from bench warmer to starter to Super Bowl MVP in just a few short months. Tom Brady, however, is the exception to the usual fortunes that befall teams when a star-caliber player is lost. While Matthews was never an All-Star, his value to the Blazers up until March of last year was never in question and his importance to the team was as highly regarded as any member of the Blazers, including Lillard and then-Blazer LaMarcus Aldridge. Very rarely, do you have a player of Matthews’ capability go down only to be better for it in such a short time. The Blazers, when all is said in done, might be lucky enough to have such a case with McCollum. Unless, of course, the Blazes trade him away.

Today, Matthews suits up for the Dallas Mavericks and is recovering successfully from his injury, just as we all thought he would. While he is now playing for a Western Conference foe, Matthews will always have a special place in the hearts of Blazers fans. He gave us everything he could while he was here, and that’s all we ever ask of our athletes that don the red and black.

McCollum is now a rising star for the Blazers and you can’t help but think of March 5. However, it is McCollum who has taken it upon himself to flourish in his new role. He has put in the hard work, recovered from his own injuries and patiently waited for his turn, however it came to be. Now, all that hard work is finally paying off. If there is one thing we can learn from the trials, tribulations and success of both McCollum and Matthews, it's that you don’t just walk into a situation and succeed. Both McCollum and Matthews worked hard for their success and rose to the occasion when it was asked of them. I look forward to watching Matthews’ continued success in Dallas and I look forward with great anticipation to what McCollum can help bring to Portland.

GoLocalPDX partner Oregon Sports News: Since 2011, Oregon Sports News has provided entertaining, hard-hitting local sports news & commentary every weekday. To read more from this author, check out Oregon Sports News by clicking here.

Related Slideshow: 12 of the Greatest Sports Movies of All Time

Hank Stern ranks his top twelve favorite sports films.

Prev Next

#12 Rollerball

Some of the non-athletic scenes in this dystopian classic show their age, but Rollerball is a strangely prescient film that anticipated both the corporatization of sport and fans’ limitless taste for violence. Bonus points for the ominous intro music.

Prev Next

#11 A League of Their Own

A comedy that looks back to the antithesis of corporate sport – a women’s baseball league during World War II with many memorable lines to choose from (e.g.,”There’s no crying in baseball.”)

Prev Next

#10 Remember The Titans

Yes, filmmakers took liberties with some of the facts dealing with the integration of a high school football team in Virginia. But there’s a reason football teams often screen this film on the eve of big games. It’s a damn inspirational tale.

Prev Next

#9 The Natural

This film has grown on me over time. Originally, it seemed slow and schmaltzy. Now, it seems well-paced and charming. Then and now, the re-created scenes of pre-World War II ballparks arrive like perfectly preserved postcards from the past.

Prev Next

#8 The Longest Yard

Not the remake with Adam Sandler and Chris Rock. But the hilarious original with Burt Reynolds and Eddie Albert as a wonderfully villainous warden who pits the guards against the inmates in a grudge football game that includes former Green Bay linebacker Ray Nitschke and other ex-football players like Sonny Sixkiller and Joe Kapp, both stalwart Pac-8 quarterbacks long, long ago.

Prev Next

#7 Slap Shot

The Hanson brothers. Enough said.

Prev Next

#6 Rocky

Often imitated, but never replicated. The definitive underdog boxing story featuring Sylvester Stallone before he became a self-caricature in multiple sequels. Impossible to hear the theme song without being motivated to get off the couch.

Prev Next

#5 Seabiscuit

A fantastic book as well as a great movie. Like “The Natural,” Seabiscuit captures its Depression-era setting for modern-day viewers taken back to an era when horse racing actually meant something in America.

Prev Next

#4 Requiem for a Heavywei

A too often-forgotten film these days but a wonderful boxing drama that shows the sport’s underside with memorable performances by Mickey Rooney, Jackie Gleason and Anthony Quinn.

Prev Next

#3 Hoosiers

Want to know something about small-town America in the 1950s and about Indiana basketball? This hoops movie does all of that with a healthy dose of redemption throughout.

Prev Next

#2 Bull Durham

There’s a pretty good case to be made this movie played a huge part in the rebirth and re-marketing of minor league baseball. As written by former minor leaguer Ron Shelton, there are many great scenes to choose from but this one is a favorite.

Prev Next

#1 Raging Bull

A rags-to-riches-to-rags story of boxer Jake LaMotta meets the actor born to play him, Robert De Niro. Not a false moment in this black-and-white powerhouse.