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New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum has agreed to a two-year, $64 million contract extension that runs through the 2025-2026 season, as per multiple reports. The news was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski which was followed by The Associated Press.
McCollum joined the Pelicans last season as he was traded with Larry Nance Jr. and Tony Snell for Josh Hart Tomas, Satoransky, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Didi Louzada with 2022 first-round pick (protected) and Two future second-round picks.
As per Wojnarowski‘s report, McCollum's new deal takes his contract with the Pelicans to four years and $133M. With this extension, New Orleans has locked their core of McCollum, power forward Zion Williamson and wing player Brandon Ingram for the next four seasons.
McCollum had an incredible 2021-22 season as he averaged 24.3 points after joining the Pelicans and became one of six players to average 20-plus points in each of the past seven seasons, including Anthony Davis, DeMar DeRozan, LeBron James, Paul George and James Harden.
The former Lehigh player expressed excitement for the 2022-23 season after the Pels bowed out against Western Conference semi-finalist Phoneix Suns. He talked about how the team will have a great start to the season and that he is extremely eager for the training camp.
He said, “I can assure you we won’t start (next season) however we started (this season), based on experience, understanding and preparation. I’m excited to go through a full training camp and really be with the team from the beginning, as opposed to coming in on the fly.
McCollum further expressed excitement about the future of the team with some quality young and experienced players on the roster. “I’m excited about the future, I’m excited to get back to work,” he said. “For all of us, the motivation is there, understanding how close we were (vs. the Suns), but how far we have to go. Playing against a championship-calibre team is always an eye-opening experience and kind of shows you how to get to that point.”