A few things are already clear about Kevin McCullar Jr. The New York Knicks clearly like him , or they wouldn't have traded Oso Ighodoro's draft rights for him two years ago. Ighodoro has since established himself, finishing fourth on Phoenix in minutes played and first among their big men last year. He'd make a lot of sense on New York's roster. Alas.
McCullar makes a certain sense, too, as we've seen in his limited minutes with the Knicks. But Mike Brown making clear to the team on Wednesday that everyone outside the starting five is "fighting" for spots is worse news for some players than others, McCullar being one of them.
Most people would never request McDonald's for their last meal. Yet the Golden Arches is nearly as ubiquitous as the sky above. Not because of their quality, but their dependability. You can be thousands of miles from home, some place you've never been, but a burger and fries will taste the same as the McDonald's you remember from childhood. Trust has legs.
McCullar is in his third year with the Knicks, but he's a baby calf compared to Bruce Brown. That matters when both players are Josh Hart cosplayers: mid-sized sedans who'll score, dish, defend and rebound while offering positional versatility.
Sure, McCullar is on a two-way and Brown isn't eligible for such a deal due to his years of service. But in the grand scheme, both players are fighting for a spot in the wing rotation and a chance to earn a contract on the main roster. Brown's also the kind of player McCullar needs to beat out to keep New York from exploring other two-way options, since those deals are non-guaranteed and the team is free to swap guys in and out as it pleases at any point .
Brown has eight years in the Association under his belt. He helped Denver win a championship three years ago before leaving for Indiana and his first big-ish NBA contract. He was then dealt twice in two years, but that's also because once he was paid what he's worth he had newfound value as trade ballast.
That's how he ended up going to Toronto in the Pascal Siakam deal, then New Orleans in the Brandon Ingram deal. Ironically, Brown once again being wildly underpaid means he may have more job security now than when he was making 10 times as much.
The Knicks don't need bait at the end of their bench, they need depth. McCullar has shown glimpses, though unless New York thinks his upside is greater than Brown's track record, what's the incentive in gambling on the candidate with less experience?
Hart has nothing to prove. Brown has shown he can play the point in a pinch. McCullar might. But are the 2027 Knicks going to give him the time and the minutes to prove it?
Sometimes when I'm stressed about my life, my father will tell me I'm still young. That was helpful back in my 20s. Reader, I am no longer anywhere near my 20s. When the person assuring you that you have time is in their 70s, it loses some steam.
McCullar, 25, is not old in human years. But he's already older than six Knicks on the current roster. In fringe-player-trying-to-secure-the-bag-and-a-place-in-the-league years, he's no longer young and getting less so all the time. That means even if nothing else changes with his attitude or his aptitude, some of the "maybes" around him start becoming "maybe nots."
Bruce Brown's made more than $60 million in his career. Look up McCullar's salary history and instead of numbers there's a "TW," meaning "two-way contract." Fair or not, that speaks to another eight-ball his chances are stuck behind: the relative lack of pain that'd come with cutting him.
Much of what New York likes about McCullar is potential. Much of what they like about Brown is proven. An aspiring contender may bet on ceiling. A defending champion prefers a known quantity.
The Knicks invested years of time and money developing McCullar. The fact that he's entering his third training camp with them shows they like what they've seen and are hopeful there's more to come.
The fact that Brown, Ochai Agbaji and Jaden Akins are all competing with him for a standard roster spot shows us the champs aren't resting on their laurels. Once upon a time, developing a second-rounder into a rotation regular was a win for the Knicks. Now the only win that matters is the one they hope crowns another title come June.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/knicks/onsi as Kevin McCullar Should Be Worried as Knicks Turn Up the Heat at Camp .
