The Golden State Warriors once won two championships with well-loved center JaVale McGee rim-running and shot blocking for the team. Now McGee has continued his career by signing with another contending team to compete for another championship.
One of the best turnarounds in recent NBA history is the career of JaVale McGee. He came into the league as the 18th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft and joined the Washington Wizards, and a relatively immature young center was suddenly surrounded by immature teammates who did a host of dumb things. McGee's game on the court was mediocre and his problems off the court kept hitting the headlines. The career trajectory for McGee seemed to be arcing into nowhere.
Then the Golden State Warriors came calling. In 2016 they signed McGee as a buy-low chance on an oft-injured big man and the combination turned his career around. McGee's perception went from immature and frustrating to goofy and lovable, and his rim-running athleticism was the perfect change-of-pace for a Warriors team that was playing the likes of Andrew Bogut, David West, Zaza Pachulia and Marreese Speights at center over the past few years.
McGee was not a crucial part of the rotation, but he played an average of 71 games in each of his two seasons and injected energy into the Warriors' attack. When he shared the court with the Warriors' other stars they played with an extra burst to try and open up easy dunks for their fun running mate. He shot 64 percent from the field with Golden State and led the team in shots per minute, just ahead of Kevin Durant.
McGee played even better in his role during his two playoff runs with the team, leading all players in field goal percentage in 2017 and starting nine games at center in 2018. He was not among the most important player or even five players on those teams, but he played a role and it was a valuable one for two titles teams. Career arc completely transformed.
JaVale McGee continues to travel the globe
The following year, McGee joined the rival Los Angeles Lakers, starting the majority of games and having the best season of his career followed by winning a title in 2020 in the NBA Bubble. McGee started 11 of 14 games during that playoff run that ended with the third title of his career.
McGee began to travel around the NBA from there, playing for five teams over the next four seasons. Then it was off to Puerto Rico, where he signed with Vaqueros de Bayamon and won the championship this past season.
Now the seven-footer has a new team and is in position to win another championship. JaVale McGee has signed with the Illawarra Hawks in the National Basketball League (NBL) of Australia. The team's home base is Wollogong, New South Wales and they are coming off a championship season. McGee now joins to help them go back-to-back.
The new reality for McGee is that everything he touches turns to gold. He hopes that will happen in Australia this year, and that his winning ways continue. Now 37 years old, McGee's career keeps on ticking