Patrick McCaw is a three-time NBA champion.
Which is insane to say for a guy who has played in fewer than 200 NBA games over four seasons and has been on the court for 245 total minutes of playoff basketball (Jayson Tatum played more than that in his last series). But if you follow the arc of McCaw’s career, as Austin63867 did at Reddit, you see a guy always in the right place. Until Friday night.
He was drafted in the second round of the 2016 NBA Draft (38th overall) by the Milwaukee Bucks, who sold his rights for $2.4 million to the Golden State Warriors. McCaw spent the next two seasons on the Warriors — the two seasons Golden State won rings behind a Stephen Curry/Kevin Durant/Klay Thompson/Draymond Green lineup no other team could match. That first season, he did have an 18-point playoff game for the Warriors, but there were not a lot of wing minutes to be had on that roster.
McCaw wanted out, then in came Cleveland with an offer sheet — two years, $6 million, none of it guaranteed. The Warriors let him walk. Then the Cavaliers waived McCaw before his contract became guaranteed, so they paid him nothing.
In steps Toronto, who picked him up in January of last season, and McCaw largely watched (48 total playoff minutes) as Kawhi Leonard led Toronto to its first-ever title.
That’s three rings. After that, McCaw signed an extension to stay in Toronto as they worked to develop him, but he was held back this season due to health complications.
Friday night, when Jayson Tatum led the Celtics past the Raptors, it was the first time McCaw had ever been on a team that lost a playoff series. When next season starts, it will be the first time McCaw didn’t watch a banner go up and collect a ring on opening night since his rookie year.
For a Bucks team that has struggled to get over the hump, maybe the key for next season is to trade for McCaw.
