Portland Trail Blazers (2013–2022) 2013–2015: Early years in 2015 The first player to ever enter the NBA from Lehigh, McCollum was picked tenth overall in the
2013 NBA draft by the
Portland Trail Blazers. He signed his rookie scale contract with the franchise on July 11, and he proceeded to play for them in the
NBA Summer League, averaging 21 points and 4 rebounds per game. Having convened for an annual photoshoot, the rookie class of 2013 took an NBA.com survey, according to which McCollum was voted the 2013–14 Rookie of the Year (together with
Victor Oladipo). McCollum sat out the first six weeks of the regular season with a foot injury. On January 1, 2014, he was assigned to the
Idaho Stampede of the development league. He was recalled by the Blazers on January 5 and made his NBA debut three days later, during which he notched 4 points as Portland beat the
Orlando Magic, 110–94. On February 8, McCollum posted a season-high 19 points in a 117–110 victory over the
Minnesota Timberwolves. On October 27, 2014, Portland exercised its third-year team option to extend McCollum's rookie scale contract through 2015–16. For his sophomore season, he played 15.7 minutes per outing while averaging 6.8 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1 assist across 62 games. During a first-round playoff loss to the
Memphis Grizzlies, Game 5, McCollum scored a then career-high of 33 points.
2015–2016: Most Improved Player Exercising their fourth-year team option on September 30, 2015, the Trail Blazers extended McCollum's rookie scale contract through the 2016–17 season. With four of Portland's previous starters—
LaMarcus Aldridge,
Nicolas Batum,
Wesley Matthews, and
Robin Lopez—having departed, only star point guard
Damian Lillard remained; thus McCollum was elevated to starting shooting guard to join Lillard in the backcourt for the 2015–16 campaign. As such, he saw his minutes increase to 34.8 per contest, and he started in all 80 games that he played. For the season, he would average 20.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.3 assists a night across 80 games. After injury decommissioned Lillard in late December, McCollum filled in as the primary point guard. On December 27, McCollum put up 35 points to go along with 11 rebounds and 9 assists during a 98–94 win over the
Sacramento Kings. No Blazer had recorded numbers on par with McCollum's near triple-double in the last 29 years (Clyde Drexler posted 34 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists or more on five occasions.) McCollum was able to resume his starting shooting guard role on January 4 as Lillard was back on his feet, returned from injury. On February 12, he was named among the invites to All-Star Weekend's
Three-Point Contest. On April 5, he posted his eighth 30-point game of the season, during a 115–107 win over Sacramento. By the end of the regular season, he averaged 20.8 points per game, while Lillard did 25.1 points, making the first backcourt to average 20 or more points apiece in Blazers' history. McCollum would subsequently earn
NBA Most Improved Player honors for his breakout 2015–16 season. McCollum helped the Blazers claim victory over the
Los Angeles Clippers, 4–2, in the first round of the playoffs. However, Portland was then ousted in the second round matchup by the
Golden State Warriors, going down 4–1; though it would come in the 125–121 loss that ended the Blazers' postseason run, McCollum recorded his third 27-point game of the playoffs during Game 5.
2016–2018: playoff disappointment On July 27, 2016, McCollum signed a four-year, $106 million contract extension with Portland. McCollum would start in all 80 games that he played and would average 23 points as well as 3.6 rebounds and as many assists. Only four days later, he posted 23 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and a career-high 3 blocks as Portland beat the
Denver Nuggets, 115–113, in an overtime contest. During a 100–94 win over the
Memphis Grizzlies on November 6, he matched his earlier career-high by racking up 37 points. On November 20, McCollum scored 33 points and hit a career-high 6 three-pointers, to defeat the
Brooklyn Nets 129–109. On December 10, he set a new career-high of 7 three-pointers made and finished with 34 points scored in a 118–111 loss to the
Indiana Pacers. He set another career-high for points scored with 43 on January 1 during a 95–89 win over the
Timberwolves. In a game on January 13, a 115–109 loss to the
Orlando Magic, he posted 26 points to extended his streak of games with 25-plus points to eight in a row, the third-longest in Blazers' history (only
Geoff Petrie with 11 and
Clyde Drexler with 9 games have had longer among Blazers players.) On February 7, McCollum scored 32 points; the last two of which, on a runner from the top of the lane, clinched the 114–113 win over the
Dallas Mavericks with 0.9 seconds left. In a 122–113 victory over Denver on March 28, McCollum finished with a 39-point tally. The Blazers finished the regular season with a 41–41 record and entered the playoffs as the eighth seed. On April 16, 2017, Portland lost 121–109 to the
Warriors in Game 1 of the first-round series; yet McCollum's 41 points during the game were his postseason career-best and made him only the eighth Blazer with a 40-point playoff performance. McCollum missed the opener of the 2017–18 season due to a single-game suspension incurred when he left the bench area once during a preseason game. McCollum would play in 80 games and start in all of them while averaging 21.4 points, 4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists a night. In his season debut on October 20, he put up 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting to lead his team past the
Indiana Pacers, 114–96. He recorded as many as 36 points during a 98–97 loss to the
Memphis Grizzlies on November 7. On the 25th of that month, McCollum had 26 points and scored 7 straight in the final quarter, as he helped Portland stage a 10–0 scoring run to overcome a 17-point deficit and defeat the
Washington Wizards, 108–105. On January 1, to defeat the
Chicago Bulls, 124–120, he scored 25 of 32 points after halftime, including the game-clinching basket with 56.5 seconds left in overtime. During a game on January 31, as Portland defeated the Bulls, 124–108, McCollum scored a franchise-record 28 points in the first quarter alone, and he finished with a career-high 50 points in only three periods before heading to the bench for the fourth. He joined
Damian Lillard,
Damon Stoudamire,
Brandon Roy,
Andre Miller,
Clyde Drexler and
Geoff Petrie as Trail Blazers to score 50 points or more. In Game 4 of the Trail Blazers' first-round playoff series against the
New Orleans Pelicans, McCollum scored 38 points in a 131–123 loss. The loss eliminated Portland from the playoffs, the last in a four-game sweep.
2018–2022: Conference Finals and last years in Portland Across 70 games, starting in all of them, McCollum would average 21 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists for the season. On December 12, he matched his season high with 40 points during a 92–83 loss to the
Memphis Grizzlies. On December 23, in a game against the
Warriors, McCollum moved past
Damon Stoudamire (717) into fifth on the Blazers' career list for 3-pointers. On December 30, he broke out of a six-game funk by hitting 13 of 18 shots in a 35-point performance as the Trail Blazers defeated the
Philadelphia 76ers 129–95. On January 22, he scored 31 points and made seven 3-pointers in a 123–114 loss to the
Oklahoma City Thunder, thus passing
Nicolas Batum (751) for fourth on the franchise's all-time 3-pointers list. On January 26, he recorded his first career triple-double with 28 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 120–111 win over the
Atlanta Hawks. On March 1, he scored 35 points and matched a career best by making seven 3-pointers in a 119–117 loss to the
Toronto Raptors. McCollum missed 10 games over late March and early April with a left knee injury. In Game 3 of the Trail Blazers' second-round playoff series against the
Denver Nuggets, McCollum matched his career playoff high with 41 points during a 140–137 win in quadruple-overtime. In Game 6, he scored 30 points in a 119–108 win, helping the Blazers tie the series against the Nuggets at 3–3. In the deciding Game 7, he scored a game-high 37 points in a 100–96 win, including the game-sealing step back jumper with 15 seconds remaining, to help the Blazers advance to the
Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2000. Portland went on to lose the conference finals in a four-game sweep to the Warriors. On November 21, 2019, McCollum scored a then season-high 37 points, along with 6 rebounds and 10 assists, in a 137–129 loss to the
Milwaukee Bucks. On February 23, 2020, he would surpass that season-high with a 41-point, 9-rebound, 12-assist performance in a 107–104 victory over the
Detroit Pistons. McCollum matched his season-high on March 2, scoring 41 points in a 130–107 win over the
Orlando Magic. On December 26, 2020, McCollum scored a season-high 44 points, along with a game-winning three-pointer, in a 128–126 overtime win against the
Houston Rockets. On August 7, 2021, McCollum was elected president of the
National Basketball Players Association, succeeding
Chris Paul who had served since 2013. On December 7, 2021, McCollum was diagnosed with a
pneumothorax and was ruled out indefinitely. On January 17, 2022, he made his return from the injury, logging 16 points in a 98–88 win over the
Orlando Magic.
New Orleans Pelicans (2022–2025) in 2022 On February 8, 2022, Portland traded McCollum,
Larry Nance Jr., and
Tony Snell to the
New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for
Josh Hart,
Nickeil Alexander-Walker,
Tomáš Satoranský,
Didi Louzada, a protected 2022 first-round draft pick, the better of New Orleans' and Portland's 2026 second-round draft pick,s and New Orleans' 2027 second-round draft pick. Two days later, McCollum made his Pelicans debut, putting up 15 points, seven rebounds, and five assists in a 112–97 loss to the
Miami Heat. On April 13, during the
NBA play-in tournament, McCollum recorded 32 points, six rebounds, and seven assists leading the Pelicans past the
San Antonio Spurs 113–103 and advancing New Orleans to the eight seed game. On September 24, 2022, McCollum agreed to a two-year, $64 million extension with the Pelicans. On December 22, McCollum put up 40 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists in a 126–117 win over the
San Antonio Spurs. He joined
Anthony Davis,
DeMarcus Cousins, and
Tyreke Evans as the only players in Pelicans history to put up at least 40 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists in a game. On December 30, McCollum scored 42 points on 11 three-pointers in a 127–116 win over the
Philadelphia 76ers. His 11 three-pointers were a Pelicans franchise record for the most three-pointers made in a game. With the Pelicans losing in the play-in game against the
Minnesota Timberwolves, this marked the first time that McCollum had missed the playoffs in his career. On November 2, 2023, McCollum scored a game-leading 33 points during a 125–116 win over the
Detroit Pistons. On January 3, 2025, McCollum tied a career-high 50 points in a 132–120 win over the
Washington Wizards. In 56 starts for New Orleans during the
2024–25 NBA season, he averaged 21.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4.1 assists. On March 31, McCollum was ruled out for the remainder of the season due to a bone bruise in his right foot.
Washington Wizards (2025–2026) McCollum was involved in a trade between the Pelicans and the
Washington Wizards, sending him, teammate
Kelly Olynyk and a future second round pick for
Jordan Poole,
Saddiq Bey and the 40th pick in the
2025 NBA Draft. The trade was officially completed on July 6, 2025. McCollum joined an Atlanta team that was 18–21 at the time of the trade and helped lead the Hawks on a 20–6 run after the All-Star break, including an 11-game winning streak. Atlanta finished 46–36 and secured a top-six playoff seed after four straight trips to the play-in tournament. He averaged 18.7 points and 4.1 assists in 41 games with Atlanta following the trade. On April 18, McCollum made his playoff debut for the Hawks in Game 1 of their first-round series against the
New York Knicks, recording 26 points and three rebounds in a 113–102 loss. On April 20, he logged 32 points, three rebounds, six assists, and two steals in a 107–106 Game 2 win. On April 23, McCollum recorded 23 points, five rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and the game-winning jumpshot in a 109–108 Game 3 win, giving the Hawks a 2–1 series lead over the Knicks. The Hawks eventually lost the series in six games. ==Career statistics==