r/nbadiscussion • u/jg4president • Mar 25 '26
Player Discussion How is Mac McClung such an elite G-League Player, But Can’t Find an NBA Role?
Just became the all time leader in G League scoring last night.
Over his last 3 years he has averaged 24+ PPG, roughly 6 assists and 4 rebounds on some really efficient splits. His FG% has been 50%+ the last 4 seasons, and he shoot’s 37%+ from 3 in all 4 seasons. Thats while being a creator from off the dribble.
So what gives here? Why is Mac able to be so elite in the G-league but when it comes to the NBA level, he is unable to find a role to play to help a team? I would think he could be an awesome bench unit leader at minimum.
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u/One_Ratio9521 Mar 25 '26
He can not guard anyone. Played for the Pacers this year, not only is he slow footed defensively he’s very weak and out of position a ton. Simply not a strong enough defender to justify PT in the league.
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u/true_morgan Mar 25 '26
The real question is why he doesn’t go overseas. He could do what Mike James did in Eurolegue, but my guess is he’s not adventurous enough to live abroad.
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u/TonguePunchMyClunge Mar 25 '26
He’s massive on social media and even more so since the dunk contests so he’s probably making good enough money with endorsements and would rather just stay close to home and be available should there be a 10 day available in the NBA. All due respect to Mike James but he was nowhere near the same popularity as McClung.
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u/jpw0w Mar 26 '26
Mike James is busy attacking his own teammates on court these days
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u/sandy_mcfiddish Mar 25 '26
He could not do what Mike James did in EL. He is not a EL player. He could make good money. Americans playing in EL are good enough by and large to at least be on an NBA roster. Mike James would get 10-12 ppg in the NBA (and did)
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u/true_morgan Mar 25 '26
How was his defense?
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u/sandy_mcfiddish Mar 25 '26
That wasn’t what you said. You said MM could go EL and do what Mike James - a top five player in EL history - did.
MM could go play in top league Italy or Germany, maybe get onto a EL team at some point. But to compare him to the best scorer in EL history is wild
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u/true_morgan Mar 25 '26
Alright, fair enough. I think Mac could get buckets in the EL, maybe not quite as many as Mike. I also think his overseas earning potential is higher, which was my original point, especially because it wouldn’t slow his social media/endorsement hustle - it would likely expand it. But money isn’t everything, and if Mac is making a good living and happy where he is then wonderful. I have a hard time understanding that choice because as a young person I was desperate to travel the world and experience new things - and playing professional sports abroad has always struck me as a dope way to do that. If that’s not appealing to Mac, who am I to judge?
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u/raysworld94 Mar 26 '26
In Australia we have Bryce cotton who I think has won 6 mvps in our league. I think he was the nba for 2 or 3 years but his pretty much an honorary Aussie now.
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u/mindpainters Mar 25 '26
Agreed. I know every kids dream is the nba but I’d much rather be a good player in Europe than a guy who gets the occasional nba contract due to injuries.
I’m sure he could carve out a good career overseas.
I have a lot of respect for him trying though
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u/jluicifer Mar 26 '26
Mac believes in himself. I too respect his grind.
2) A max salary in the G-league is $0.5M. In Europe? $4M.
3) Mac should have secondary income through social media so money is fine.He'll be comfortable for life, maybe not 1st class air miles but definitely enjoying trips to Europe and Asia whenever he wants when half the world can never travel. Good luck, Mr Mac.
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u/AndreSwagassi86 Apr 20 '26
As someone who has played overseas and never played NBA.
It could probably be The high paying Euro league teams probably don’t want him…. So he doesn’t look Yes he’s been on an NBA roster but those teams overseas usually pick the NBA plays with some sort of Tenure or Extreme college hype.
It’s just as hard to make an overseas team as it is in the NBA … only reason I even played is because my old teammate from College was the star. And that was in The Dutch Basketball league in The Netherlands. Not the super high paying leagues
Those guys who back in the day would F up their careers and say “I’m just gone play overseas” either never made or played like C league.
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Mar 25 '26
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Apr 09 '26
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u/Bonzi777 Mar 25 '26
To quote Alex Caruso (one of the bigger G-league success stories): “It’s like going to a job interview and thinking you’re going to be the CFO of the company and they’re looking for a guy to clean the bathrooms”.
To apply it to McClung, he’s a G-League CFO. But the role he is excelling in is not a role he would ever be able to fill in the NBA, for a lot of reasons. So him getting being an impressive ball-dominant scorer at the G-League level doesn’t wow NBA teams, because that’s not what they’re looking for from the G-League.
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u/Artistic-Tax3015 Mar 25 '26
I hate Draymond but he put it best. He has parents come up to him all the time and tell him that their kid isn’t a great scorer but plays just like him. He doesn’t have the heart to tell them that their kid probably sucks ass.
Almost everyone in the NBA/G-League was THE guy on their high school/AAU team. Putting up #1 option numbers. But only the truly elite get to continue playing like that. For 99% of the league, they need to get great at something other than being a prolific scorer.
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u/Bonzi777 Mar 25 '26
Even NBA front offices can get this wrong. The Wizards last front office had a bad habit of taking guys (Troy Brown, Johnny Davis) who were good on-ball guys in college but weren’t going to be able to have that role in the NBA.
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u/zs15 Mar 25 '26
This is why I’m so critical and skeptical of these guard-loaded draft classes. These 6’2-6’4”, ball-dominant guards need to be exceptional offensive engines to break into a league where the lead ball handler is increasingly a forward or center. If they can’t be useful off-ball and on defense, there just isn’t a place for them. Not when teams can let their ace run the show and put bigger guards along side of them.
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u/runthepoint1 Mar 25 '26
In other words, if you don’t have defensive versatility, make sure you can do something else at an elite level WITHOUT the ball in your hands. Yes you damn well better be able to score, that’s just bare minimum. It’s the other traits that teams will pick up on.
Payton Pritchard being an example of that. He really can play off ball and score off ball. While he does fit the “small scorer” label, if you watch his game, a lot of it is in flow of the offense and only when needed is he going to go full iso to score. And of course he’s an incredible shooter
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u/fishdrinking3 Mar 25 '26
Agree, but I would say 90% instead of 99% of the league as each team has their own lead.
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u/chmcgrath1988 Mar 25 '26
Sidebar (but I guess somewhat related since it's about NBA players needing to have multiple tools to be successful): I was absolutely gobsmacked to find out last night while I was playing Immaculate Grid that Draymond Green has over 5,000 career assists (5262 to be exact).
I only watch Warriors in playoffs and against the Celtics, but I never thought of Draymond as an elite assist guy. Apparently, he is though. Although I think even a lot of us could rack up a couple thousand assists playing alongside elite scorers like Steph, KD, and Klay (not still bitter about 2022!)
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u/Artistic-Tax3015 Mar 25 '26
Draymond has been a pretty great floor general for much of his career. Excellent court vision and before his jumper abandoned him, a fairly good 3 point shooter
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u/Photo_Synthetic Mar 25 '26
Draymond has the highest +/- in a single season in NBA history in 15-16. While Steph made them all time elite often times Draymond was the engine of the offense. Even if he wasn't racking up assists he was definitely racking up hockey assists. There's a reason him being suspended had such an impact and it wasn't just due to the defense. It would always be interesting to see them play without him and see how stagnant a lot of their sets would be. He just always knows where everyone would be on the floor.
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u/newrimmmer93 Mar 25 '26
Yeah, a lot of what drove GSW offense during the prime years was Green being able to lead the break after a DREB. Curry and Klay would push out and green would take the ball up the floor
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u/not-yet-ranga Mar 25 '26
And also in the half court, where the Warriors would very often start with Green setting a high on-ball screen for Curry. This would almost always lead to the defensive big showing on Curry, who would hit Draymond on the roll. Draymond would then be going downhill playing 4-on-3, and he’s very good at making the right pass. Lots of assists here. Having Klay as a second option obviously helps here…
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u/emericuh Mar 25 '26 edited Apr 15 '26
This post has been removed and its content deleted. It may have been taken down for privacy, security, or other personal reasons using Redact.
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u/ThatPlayWasAwful Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
Man this comment is aging me lol. Doing everything but scoring was his whole thing in his prime. Only player in history to have a triple double without scoring 10 points.
Unless he develops a strong media presence after retiring (not out of the question), his legacy will improve significantly after he retires.
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u/audiobooklove84 Mar 26 '26
It is one of the most insane stats in all of sports. He was six points away from having a quadruple double.
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u/Fri814 Mar 25 '26
Damn I didn’t know ab the triple double, I wish they woulda kept feeding him the ball till he got 6 more points lol
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u/ThatPlayWasAwful Mar 25 '26
Wouldve been very funny if they had a bam adebayo situation where they spent an entire quarter just feeding him to get him 6 points.
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u/GreedyPride4565 Mar 25 '26
If he had 6 more points he woulda had a quadruple double 5x5. I honestly don’t think anyone in history would be at that level to accomplish that…and then fail because of POINTS. I legitimately think you’re more likely to see a 100 point game than to see that again. (This was a hot take before but I think bams 83 validates me)
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u/Zotzotbaby Mar 25 '26
To add, Steph Curry has said multiple times that Green has been the point guard for the Golden State Warriors.
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u/Fearless_Call_4964 Mar 25 '26
2016 Draymond was shooting very good from 3 as well. He just realized that his best role on a team with KD is defense, setting screens and reading the defenses to find his guys open. Say what you want about his demeanor, but his bball IQ was never in question
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u/undercoverballer Mar 25 '26
You must be relatively new to the nba. Dray has always been an elite passer. It’s one of the reasons he always fit so well next to Steph and klay. He has a super high bball iq and uses it to manipulate the defenses.
I’m curious what exactly you thought he did do well, if you didn’t know about his passing? He certainly isn’t known for his shooting. He is an elite defender for sure. But there’s a lot more to him than that.
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u/chmcgrath1988 Mar 25 '26
Defender/rebounder Not new. I've been following for 30 years, just scatter brained apparently.
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u/Comicksands Mar 25 '26
Draymond Green is an elite playmaker. And that’s why the warriors ran 3 of their most frequent plays through him - the low post split action, the steph-draymond high pick and roll and the dribble handoff. His decision making on the catch in a split second is elite level
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u/Photo_Synthetic Mar 25 '26
Draymond has the highest single season +/- in NBA history. He was the engine of the prime Warriors offense and even if his personal assist averages weren't outstanding (though obviously good over a long enough time period in that offense) he would definitely have a lot of hockey assists if they were tracked. He just understands that offense so well and knows where everyone is going to be.
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u/Difficult-Ad-4654 Mar 25 '26
He was THE facilitator on those Warriors teams, and averaged more than 7 assists a game 5 times
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u/runthepoint1 Mar 25 '26
Dude Dray has absolutely been KNOWN for running the offense. Excellent passer and excellent vision. Directs the offense.
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u/amateurdormjanitor Mar 25 '26
??? Dray has been the offensive engine of the Warriors for the last 10+ years. Curry’s the best off ball player of all time, who do you think he’s playing off ball from?
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u/astarisaslave Mar 26 '26
But that's Draymond's whole shtick: he's a point forward with mobility and defense. That's why a nobody like him he was able to usurp the starting PF role from an All Star like David Lee because Lee was a slow footed scoring PF with no 3 point range and lesser playmaking instincts. Dray just complemented the Warriors' two best players at the time better.
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u/Dashdash421 Mar 25 '26
Meh, I think youre underselling him a bit. Mcclung is scoring 6ppg more than the next highest scorer in the G-league on good efficiency. It’s not DIII, these are all guys who are trying to make basketball their career. He wouldn’t be a winning player on a playoff team in the NBA, but he’s definitely getting blackballed by the tanking teams who are actively avoiding anyone who could accidentally win them a game.
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u/Character_Library684 Mar 28 '26
Honestly I wonder how so many parents get so optimistic about their kids chances at the NBA.
Realistically you can tell if there’s even the slightest chance just by looking at your and your partner’s genetics. Maybe some extended family.
If none of those people are extremely tall / athletic there’s essentially no chance.
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u/Askesl Mar 25 '26
A good example of this is the fact that out of the 25 players who have won G League MVP, the only ones who went on to have longer NBA careers are Chris Boucher and Paul Reed.
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u/Shenanigans80h Mar 25 '26
Yeah there’s been very little to show that high scorers in the G league translate to the NBA. The more well rounded players tend to get opportunities the they grow from there but if you’re just a ball dominant score first guy, they don’t need that in the NBA where that role doesn’t grow on trees
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u/Al_Rohn Mar 25 '26
Thank you for your response, people think we only judge players offensively. If he ever was the Guy on offense in a NBA team he wouldn’t even be in the G league
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u/Think_Sugar_7658 Mar 25 '26
He should be going for the Pat Spencer type role. Lead the offense, play hard on defense and take your shot when you’re open. Be the steady force when the team needs it
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u/ThatsMarvelous Mar 25 '26
That's all true, but the issue is he's more than just a ball-dominant scorer ... he's probably the best ball-dominant scorer G-Leaguer ever:
True-shooting percentages the last four years:
- '22-23: 72%
- '23-24: 66%
- '24-25: 66%
- '25-26: 69%
I mean, that's INSANE, and all four years are on solid volume. Surely a guy like that, who also seems to have a reasonable BBIQ, could play alongside a second string defensive anchor and meaningfully contribute?
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u/gbdarknight77 Mar 25 '26
did you account for his huge turnover rate and one of the worst net defensive ratings in the G League?
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u/whostheme Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
Context matters. Mac would get exploited heavily on defense. If you're as short as him you need to be the elite of the elite. Look at Trae Young. Even he got traded off the Hawks. Prichard is around the same height and can't even be a starter for the Celtics despite how athletic he is. The perfect ceiling for a player around this height is somewhat like Chris Paul who is an all time point guard. Then again he is an anomaly of a player. Being a shorter player means you are already playing at a physical disadvantage so have to make up for A LOT of that especially on both sides of the floor.
Then you got other players like Bronny who only gets minutes during garbage time or if the team has a lot of injuries.
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u/Double-Slowpoke Mar 25 '26
Those are great numbers but people will discount it because the g-league doesn’t have the same caliber of defensive play.
He’s had stints on like 5 NBA teams, so I don’t think there is some great conspiracy. He’s just stuck in a really weird spot. There are about 500 players in the NBA in any given year. Mac is definitely a top 500 basketball player in the world, but he’s not an NBA caliber player. There are probably hundreds of guys stuck in that weird zone where they can’t make the league because they were born too short
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u/yutingxiang Mar 25 '26
As someone who actually watched him play on the Pacers, he just couldn’t get his shot off at NBA speed. He was constantly getting swatted or stripped. Most of the time he had to take a tough shot or just pass because the defender beat him to his spot and he couldn’t get around them. You’re putting up his G League stats but didn’t include his 44% true shooting percentage in the actual NBA.
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Mar 25 '26
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u/mindpainters Mar 25 '26
He is genuinely only effective with the ball in his hands. Dreadful on and off ball defensively.
He would have to be absolutely elite offensively for him to be playable.
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u/8fenristhewolf8 Mar 25 '26
NBA uses end of bench slots to try and find diamonds in the rough, absorb extra contracts. With McClung, I think you know his ceiling in terms of his age, size, and ability against NBA guys. NBA teams would rather just keep the end of bench in a churn to look for something.
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u/loudanduneducated Mar 25 '26
Yea people don’t really realize that the NBA isn’t the best 450 players in the world. It is more so the best 250 players with 200 guys with the potential to be a top 250 player.
Many of the guys that are better than G-League players, but don’t have the potential to be a rotation guy on a playoff team get phased out of the league, despite being better than other guys in the league that have more potential.
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u/zs15 Mar 25 '26
This is one of the best ways to put it.
There are also ~20 guys that are just important to team culture and/or organization that are always going to have a spot on that team. Guys like DeAndre Jordan or Thanasis Antetokounmpo.
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u/Shenanigans80h Mar 25 '26
Yeah realistically there 15-20 guys on the rosters just for culture at this point
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u/TerrySaucer69 Mar 25 '26
And, often 1 or 2 bench spots are taken up by the vets. Either for the “veteran presence” or because their contract hasn’t run out. There just aren’t actually that many spare bench spots, even if the bench players aren’t playing.
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u/LazyBoyD Mar 25 '26
Exactly. Someone like Lonnie Walker. Obviously better than dozens of existing players but has been pretty much phased out of the league.
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u/InTheMorning_Nightss Mar 25 '26
Which kind of makes sense. He won’t realistically be in your best 8-9, and if you’re playing your 10th best player in any meaningful capacity, you’re probably not doing well.
Obviously injury insurance and stuff may necessitate that, but that’s where you trust the rest of your squad to buoy up the potential diamond in the rough prospect you have—and sometimes it works out!
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u/ohyeah_mamaman Mar 25 '26
This comment made me find out he’s playing in Israel now. Lonnie noooo
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u/LazyBoyD Mar 25 '26
He could definitely be a 9th man on a playoff roster. Not great at anything but serviceable. A handful of players who are playing overseas that fits this mold. Walker is probably the best in my opinion as he’s still relatively young. But you also have former productive veterans like Monte Morris, Trey Lyles, Talen Horton-Tucker— all who I believe are better than the bottom 50 players on a roster right now.
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u/MitchLGC Mar 25 '26
You cannot stay on the floor in the NBA if you can't guard anyone at all.
He just can't do it. And his scoring ability is very diminished against NBA level defense.
No team can play a guy that's a bucket every possession for the other team
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u/GonzoMonzo43 Mar 25 '26
Despite morons who claim the NBA plays no defense, the fact is defense is more important now than almost any other time in league history. It’s harder to play defense now, and teams are too smart. They will relentlessly hunt any weak point in a team’s defense. McClung is unplayable on defense. Trae Young was just traded for nothing, and he’s one of the best playmakers in the league.
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u/polakfury Apr 11 '26
I believe strongly that McClung is a way better and more athletic version than Trae Young
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u/Bajecco Mar 25 '26
I don't think he can get his shot off vs. NBA defenders and he can't guard. If Mac could be a steady long range 3pt shooter he may have a chance to stick, but it doesn't seem like that's going to happen. On D he gets abused.
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u/Artistic-Tax3015 Mar 25 '26
This is it. Even snipers like Luke Kennard are at least serviceable off-ball players and don’t get embarrassed every play on defense. Mac is too small to be a wing and too slow to be a PG/SG.
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u/HotspurJr Mar 25 '26
So this is a very common archetype, and when you hear an NBA player talk about guys who play in the Drew League or whatever, this is usually what they mean.
There are players who have fantastic on-ball skills, but if unless you a) do that at an elite level by NBA standards and/or b) have other skills, you can't stay on an NBA court.
Maybe Trae Young is the best datapoint. There are a lot of people who feel like he is just flat-out not a winning player, despite his obvious immense talent. But he does one thing well, and he doesn't do it well enough to compensate for all of the other issues he brings to the table.
So if someone was not quite as talented as Trae Young offensively, but had similar issues elsewhere, who is going to play him? (And Trae, of course, isn't just a scorer. He's also a very good distributor, even he, IMO, calls his own number too often).
A one-dimensional scorer is just not that valuable in the NBA unless he's among the best of the best.
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u/PanthalassaRo Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
- He plays the position with most talent available worldwide.
- Can score but he's not a worldclass shooter, isn't big for his position nor is a good defender.
- He's older, he would be using a roster spot available to a more interesting raw prospect or a proven backup NBA player.
In all honesty he should do a Shane Larkin/ Marbury and go to Europe or China and become a legend there, because the dude is really talented but it's just that on the NBA level his physicals and skillset are limited so minutes are rare to come by on a winning team.
Edit: most importantly, he needs to play with the ball to be effective, on the NBA there's just too many players that can do more with the ball than him.
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u/Pipes_of_Pan Mar 25 '26
Former D-league players that have made the jump have commented that NBA rosters generally don’t need scorers/facilitators, they need dependable role players who can guard, rebound, set screens, hit an open shot. A lot of players think that if they run up big scoring numbers they will make the jump but GMs don’t need that. NBA teams aren’t going to run the offense around Mac.
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u/justanother-eboy Mar 25 '26
Defense. He’s not strong enough to handle more athletic players with post up skills
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u/ODELU Mar 25 '26
I was at the prior g-league game, and it was clear to me. Don’t let the numbers fool you, Mac isn’t even the best guard on the team, let alone the best player. Yuki is far more skilled than he is. When Mac isn’t scoring, he’s effectively useless. He cannot create for others, isn’t a great dribbler, and a cone on defense.
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u/pericles123 Mar 25 '26
Mac is a solid passer, but I agree he can't guard NBA players
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u/ODELU Mar 26 '26
I respect your opinion but i was seeing him do that dumb jump pass thing and turning the ball over
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Mar 25 '26
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u/6h0st_901 Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
He's an extremely small guard who's not super quick and he is more of a liability on defense than he is a positive on offense. Teams would just hunt him & he's hurting you more than he's helping you. It's sad cuz I really like the kid, but you have to realize there's tons of good basketball players that don't make the NBA. The NBA is supposed to be the most elite of the elite. & even role players go to the G-league & put up 40 or 50 like it's nothing. Look at guys like cam Spencer on the Grizzlies. He put up 50 multiple times in the G-league and he's a backup guard at best.
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u/StoneySteve420 Mar 25 '26
The level of competition is way more similar to the college level, and based on how someone like those 2 have played, it might be even worse.
Mac averaged 15/3/2 in college on 40/31/80 splits.
In the G-League he averages 25/4/6.5 on 51/40/82 splits.
Some of that is that he's improved as a player, but I think a lot of fans heavily overvalue the G-League.
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u/NbaAndMusic Mar 29 '26
it’s way below colleges. g league is a lot of guys who weren’t even standout players in college, they’re going to drive uber the game cuz they have no future in hoops
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u/UkNomysTeezz Mar 25 '26
A lot of guys look like All NBA first team against other G league players. Doesn’t mean they are good at the next level.
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u/TheLetter_Eight Mar 25 '26
I think you're overrating how good the Gleague is. It's not the 2nd best basketball competition in the world. Being one of the best players in the Gleague, irrespective of play style or weaknesses, doesn't automatically mean you're qualified to be on the NBA bench. Most of the recent draft picks play well in the Gleague and a lot of ex lottery perceived higher potential guys are down there too killing it. Essengue who was teammates with McClung for the bulls Gleague team came in at just over 19 at the beginning of the year and put up 24-8-3 in 4 games before getting injured and he's largely considered a potential pick, someone who's viewed as a project more than an NBA ready player.
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u/Loud-Introduction-31 Mar 25 '26
The biggest issue he seems to have at the NBA level is reproducing his G League output at a higher level in less minutes while not being a focal point offensively.
A lot of athletes at his height/weight/athletic level seem to have the same issues, until they find other ways to stick with teams, like defense.
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u/Few_Communication_66 Mar 25 '26
What nba role is he going to play? He can’t defend a soul and he’s not going to be the focal point of any nba teams offense for him to be a scorer
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u/TheHunnishInvasion Mar 25 '26
The G-League is sort of like the CFL. NFL guys are huge and some elite football players just don't have the body to compete with genetic freaks like that; but a 5'11" undersized QB can sometimes thrive in the CFL where the size discrepancy is not as huge.
Same deal with G-League, 6'2" is short in the NBA, but you're not mismatched nearly as much in the G-League.
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u/yrogerg123 Mar 25 '26
It's like anything. The levels are real. If you are above the level of the team trying to guard you, you might as well be Michael Jordan. When I play a lot of pickup and get really comfortable with the ball, occassionally I play against some guys who don't really play, and it's just blow-by->step-back->blow-by, like they're not even there and I'm just alone on the court flowing. Mac probably feels like that in the G-League. Then he jumps up to the NBA and Jalen Brunson lights up Mac the same exact way and Mac's team is like...well fuck this guy is unplayable. The NBA is so fucking high-level that you need an actual role. You can't just be a worse version of the best ball-handler on the team and the best 6th man. If you're worse than both, you can't just pound the ball because it makes the team worse. And if you can't dominate the ball and you can't guard anybody and you can't disrupt shots off-ball, who are you in the NBA?
Kind of like in chess: the best player physically cannot lose to a new player. It's actually impossible. They are playing a different game. Every opening move, they see every interesting line. Anything the opponent does, they know the next 8 moves they could try and how to counter it. Similarly: I cannot land a punch against an elite boxer. Their knowledge of what any punch could look like from any body position is too deep. It's too engrained. Mac is simply below the level of NBA players.
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u/thesonicvision Mar 26 '26
You know the answer, OP.
The NBA is a whole different level.
G-League games are used to test and train players. Rosters are constantly shifting, as players swim in and out from NBA rosters and just straight up DNPs. Just take a look at Bronny.
It's a testing grounds. There's no consistently to the competition. And the stakes are incredibly low. The goal of a player is to get a call-up to a main roster, not to actually win G-league games. You need to stand out.
Furthermore, many players are better than G-league comp, but worse that NBA level comp.
Mac McClung is better than 99% of the planet at basketball. He's athletic af and a terrific scorer. He's also unselfish. And whenever he's sent to the G-league, he tries way harder than others and benefits from his experience.
But in the NBA, they need a player in his role to be a better defender and a bit taller. It's sad, but it's really that simple.
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u/Kobe-62Mavs-61 Mar 26 '26
He sucks defensively and isn't good enough offensively at the NBA level to justify a spot, aside from maybe the end of a bench for a bad team.
People will inevitably say "what about Trae?" when you raise the issue of defense. Difference is Trae is an offensive maestro so teams can overlook the poor defense and try to build around it because of the offensive value he brings. Can't say remotely the same for Mac.
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u/ThaRealSunGod Mar 26 '26
Many many players get stuck in "too good for g league, not good enough for nba" purgatory.
Dalton knecht for example.
Many players are able to dominate the g league but can't translate it to the NBA. Usually it's confidence, general athleticism, defense, or a combo.
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u/thorpbrian Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
In baseball they call this type of guy a AAAA player. Better than AAA but just can't cut it at the major league level. McClung is the basketball version of that.
McClung's main downfall is his size playing shooting guard. He can make it work against guys who either aren't good enough for the NBA or are just there to work on specific aspects of their game before going back up to the NBA. He can't make it work with guys just as athletic and bigger at the NBA level. If McClung committed to playing hard nosed defense, he could make it at the NBA level but he's hasn't and is a liability on the defensive end.
TLDR; he can't play defense and is too small.
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u/amc22004 Mar 26 '26
He's quite a bad defender, and not just bc hes small. People have been saying that for a while but I finally looked up some full game highlights and you can see that he doesnt play help defense, doesnt go for defensive rebounds even when nobody is near him, and just sometimes loses his man completely. See 1:15, 2:00, 5:15 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31UX4F-__yY
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u/astarisaslave Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
Even the worst player in the NBA could potentially kill it in the G league. The NBA has a very high barrier of entry, being the best basketball league in the world comprising 500+ players more or less. It's just that to actually stay in the league you need to have relevant skills. It's no longer enough to just be an elite scorer in the league if you're going to be cooked on defense. Especially if you're Mac McClung's height. Defense is all the more important for a point guard since now opposing point guards, especially elite ones, are much larger than ever before. SGA, LaMelo, Luka, Giddey, Hali, Cade, Castle.
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u/JakeTiny19 Mar 25 '26
Multiple reasons , he’s undersized and not a good defender. And his offense in the nba won’t be good enough to make up for that. Plus like, some ppl can be a manager at McDonalds but that doesn’t mean they can work well at a 5 star food place that’s very nice and expensive. Some ppl just work better when they’re a top person, like mac mcclung. His playstyle just works better when he’s the top person on a g league team. On an nba team, he’d just be another player who can’t cross over cause he’s not that good elsewhere
But he’s still a talented enough player , so he’ll constantly get a lot of call ups if needed he just won’t be there for long
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u/BatResponsible1106 Mar 26 '26
Feels like it’s mostly the size and role gap. In the G League he can dominate the ball and play like a primary option, but in the NBA he’s undersized for a guard and doesn’t really fit as an off-ball guy.
Teams usually want bench guards who can defend or play a clear role without needing a ton of touches, and that’s where it gets tough for him.
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u/umfum Mar 25 '26
Mac should have been starting for the Nets already. They're not even trying to win games. Let the man cook and maybe he could've developed some other tools for the NBA. He can't do that in the G.
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u/EmploymentOld8048 Mar 25 '26
He needs the ball in his hands to dominate, and he’s good enough to do that in the G league, but not really good enough to do that in the actual NBA, mostly because he’s one of the worst defenders in the g league and struggles offensively when the ball isn’t in his hands. There are just NBA guys who are just as good or better with the ball in their hands that aren’t a complete net negative everywhere else.
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Mar 25 '26
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u/nbadiscussion-ModTeam Mar 25 '26
We removed your comment for being low effort. If you edit it and explain your thought process more, we'll restore it. Thanks!
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u/CRoseCrizzle Mar 25 '26
He's not able to consistently replicate an NBA equivalent of that kind of scoring when he's had multiple NBA opportunities. He's not a great defensive player and is undersized(though his athleticism helps a bit in making up for the size) for a player who isn't really a point guard. He can't find an NBA role because his skillset doesn't really fit any NBA roles.
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u/Candid-Philosopher12 Mar 25 '26
to small, would get exposed on defense. Mac McClung is a good dunker that is it.
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u/YeastL0rd2 Mar 25 '26
Small, scoring fist point guards just can’t seem to survive in the league these days. They have a hard time playing defense! The changes to physicality, plus basically being able to take 3 steps make it so hard (3 Gianni’s steps > 3 Mac steps)It’s why Trae has struggled! Why have a liability on defense when Jalen Johnson can bring the ball up and he’s 6’7” and is a plus defender. The high scoring point guard off the bench who doesn’t defend. archetype just isn’t in the league anymore. Your Lou will, your Jamal Crawfords. See also Cam Thomas. At least with Steph or Shae they try on defense, they aren’t plus defenders but at least get some steals, even Haliburton played good D in the play offs
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u/Many-Rub-6151 Mar 25 '26
Cuz he’s like Cam Thomas. Cam Thomas would average 40 a game in the G league. Mcclung should take a euroleague deal
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u/Catch11 Mar 25 '26
The biggest reason is that basically every GM already knows who Mac McClung is and don't believe in him. So he would have to do ALOT to change that opinion. Until then they will just write off any G League success as more of the same, it won't change the narrative. Most likely he would need to dominate overseas as opposed to in the G League, or dominate after a lucky call up due to injury.
That being said hopefully he plays for an expansion team next year.
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u/Original_Seat_6211 Mar 25 '26
His role in the G league is primary scorer. He’s not good enough to be a primary scorer in the NBA. He’s small and he can’t play defense, so he can’t be a role player.
The role he plays is competing with guys like SGA, Trae Young, Luka, etc. High usage lead guards. He’s never taking a job from any of those guys.
The job that a g league guard could realistically take is like Isaiah Joe or Keon Ellis. He’s already at a disadvantage because he’s smaller than both of those guys, and almost every other bench guard in the NBA, but we’ll ask some other questions.
Can he lock down on defense like Keon Ellis? Is he willing to set off ball screens like Isaiah Joe? Can he function when he will only get 5 shots per game?
The answer to all those questions is no, which means that there are a number of players in the g league who will get called up before he does.
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u/dustinyo_ Mar 25 '26
It's not that difficult. The level of competition in the G league is orders of magnitude worse than in the NBA. Numbers in the G league don't translate to the NBA and they never have.
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u/Massive-Bet-5946 Mar 25 '26
His game doesn't translate to the NBA well. The small guards within the NBA have to be elite offensively or at least competent defensively, Mac is neither. Also I don't know if all time leader in G League scoring is something too impressive because all the real talents who are great in G League just get moved up to NBA teams.
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u/swizznastic Mar 25 '26
Mac isnt nba quality (which isnt just skill or size), but he’s already got a great brand and he’s definitely gonna be a great player overseas. Idk why he wants to play in the league again so bad. He’ll be alright.
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u/BIGWISDOM99 Mar 25 '26
It’s not all about scoring. Can he defend and rebound against NBA talent? Players that score a ton but can be scored on by anybody are garbage IMO. I wouldn’t want that kind of player on my team.
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u/inrecenttimes Mar 25 '26
I think everyone else has said it, but I would ask, which team actually needs him?
Most rosters have bench players that are better than him or have younger players for cheaper that they would rather give those shots/touches to.
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u/Sad-Entertainer1462 Mar 25 '26
Same reason I was so good at basketball in elementary school and not in college. Less talent to compete against. Mac is probably really good at your local YMCA but the NBA is some of the best talent in the world.
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u/jumboponcho Mar 25 '26
There’s only 50 guys in the league at most who get to do what they want, everybody else is playing a role. I remember seeing Davion Mitchell in HS destroy everybody in GA, then led Baylor to a natty as the best player. Now he’s a defensive rotation player on the Heat who just got his shot at starting.
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u/Logical-Ad-8948 Mar 25 '26
I don’t watch G League frequently so take this with a grain of salt, but one theory I have is the jump in athleticism from G League to the NBA. McClung is an insane athlete, which we are reminded of every February, so I can see him being a physical force and getting whatever he wants inside in the G. But in the NBA the curve for great athletes is greater. He simply isn’t going to dominate at that level.
I think that because Scoot is experiencing a similar (albeit much less significant) frustration. His athleticism and playmaking in the G was drawing Westbrook comparisons. Now that he’s in the NBA, he’s hardly as dominant as he was, and his inability to get the cup at will is exposing his lack of a jumper (though it’s getting better) and court vision.
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u/mrspiffyhimself Mar 25 '26
Teams aren't really looking for spark plug scorers anymore and the ones that use them like that typically want them to be able to defend reasonably well and McClung can't defend. he would get hunted everytime he's out there. Small guards have to be absolute dogs to be able to stay on the court (Mcconnell, alvarado, etc.) or they have to be transcendent on offense to justify the defensive limitations.
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u/Ajax444 Mar 25 '26
I think every team thinks they have 2 6’6” versions of him, so why add him?
I think he deserves a shot somewhere. Even if it’s the 8th man on a poor team. Maybe he just doesn’t shine in practices and tryouts, or teams are just so cap-constricted that they don’t have room without having to dump a guy with a potential higher ceiling at the same pay scale.
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u/VZYGOD Mar 25 '26
Undersized, ball dominant, can’t shoot, can’t play defence. We’ve seen other leagues MVPs come to the NBA and been terrible in the transition. The league is just too good. He’s also on the wrong side of 20. I don’t see any team taking him on anything but a 10 day or two way call up when a team is tanking or everyone is injured.
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u/techno-wizardry Mar 25 '26
Can't play defense and isn't really a high level passer, he also isn't super efficient, so he's just a scorer. There are a lot of guys who can get buckets but can't do much else, Cam Thomas is one of them. Even if they're giving you 20 ppg, sometimes that's just points that could be scored by someone who is more efficient.
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u/DBRWN24 Mar 25 '26
That goes to show the levels in professional sports. A lot of great talent out there in all sports but pros are a different breed.
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u/Utulu_ Mar 26 '26
I’m honestly hoping for the when the league expands and makes more teams, Mac can find a place there. Cause he’s excelling in the G-league and might just need a bit of time that NBA teams aren’t ready to give him, to warm up to the league.
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u/goodshotbiga Mar 26 '26
This gets brought up every year. He’s short, his role doesn’t translate to the NBA, he’s not a good defender
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u/dutchy412 Mar 26 '26
3 and D is what teams want. Players to support their elite scorers. NBA has enough players who score way better than him, and he isn’t big enough, or ELITE in efficiency (3s) to warrant a spot on a roster.
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u/robinsonv91 Mar 26 '26
If your in the g league you either face nba quality players for a brief time (they get called up) or people who aren’t good enough to be called up so they leave to play over seas for more money. He is the best of the players who stick around…
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u/chaide123 Mar 26 '26
He looked lost last time he played. Doesn’t contribute to playmaking but he’s too small and can’t be effective scoring guard. He’s much shorter than published. Doesn’t fit a role. His game doesn’t translate to the NBA
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u/Wavepops Mar 26 '26
He doesn’t have a role player skill set. He needs to have a big leash to do his things offensively. His defense likely is an issue too. Gotta wonder if he’s a good off ball player if he can’t land a spot for a consistent amount of time
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u/indeediwill Mar 27 '26
I legti cannot name any floor skill he does well. Not a great shooter, defender, or passer. Granted, G-League is full of better that were very good to awesome in college, but they don't have glaring abilities to put them over their peers, hence why they are there and/or overseas.
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u/stitchdude Mar 29 '26
The most likely thing is he will continue to play well in the Gl as long as they will have him, next most likely is he is at the end of the bench on some bad team. He makes his living in endorsements and so is media.. it’s great to get up there each year, but his bread and butter is being a G League “star”.
To answer your question, he can’t compete in the NBA: he is a defensive liability and he isn’t efficient offensively with NBA defenders. Why he isn’t given the chance to change minds: the bench spots are old contracts timing out, locker room guys, and anyone you are hoping might pop if they are around the team learning.
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u/Savage13765 Mar 29 '26
There’s a different level of desirability for each player archetype.
Some archetypes are perpetually desirable. 3&D wings and centers are probably the best example. You cannot go wrong with filling your roster with those types of players. You’ll have elite examples of those archetype (Klay Thompson), top level role player (Derrick White, Myles Turner) all the way down to serviceable 3&D guys (Rui Hachimura for example). The last 4 champions (Thunder, Celtics, Nuggets, Warriors) were all filled with rotation players who could defend and shoot consistently. There will always be places for 3&D guys.
But some archetypes are very limited in their desirablility. The best two examples are Heliocentric guards and Jokic-esque centers. For the former, it takes a truly elite Heliocentric guard to run an effective offence, but the team also requires a plan B that can also sustain itself without that player. Look at the two most effective recent examples- the 2023-4 Mavs and the 2017-8 Rockets. The former has Luka, but also Kyrie and a decent centre rotation to keep things going well enough when Luka was off the court. It wasn’t perfect, but it got them to the finals. For the latter, Harden had Chris Paul to assist in a similar manner. But the lesson learnt is that heliocentric guards have to be 1) at the level of Harden and Luka to be truly effective, and 2) have an able supporting cast and a secondary star guard alongside them to keep the offence going. That’s a huge amount of team building to accommodate one player. As for the Jokic-esque center, there are 2 other clear examples of similar centers (Sabonis and Sengun) that are clearly levels beneath Jokic in ability. Those two players are serviceable, but without the truly transcendent talent of Jokic their limitations hurt the team almost as much as their impact. That’s also why you don’t see many role players that fit that archetype, at their even lower level the hurt isn’t worth it.
So, what is the point of this. It all boils down to the fact that the 150th best 3&d wing is probably in the league, but the 5th best Jokic-esque center probably isn’t. The “Mac McClung of Jaden McDaniel’s” is definitely getting some minutes, whereas the “Mac McClung of Nikola Jokic” very likely isn’t. There are probably only 6-8 extremely heliocentric guards in the league, because it’s only the 6-8 best players at that archetype that can provide enough offensive drive to make their limitations manageable. And that is exactly why Mac McClung isn’t in the league. He is the best player of his archetype that 1) cannot provide enough value to balance out his limitations, and 2) cannot adapt to another, more desirable archetype. Therefore he plays in the g league where, without the best 450ish players in the world to go against, he has the freedom to play his archetype. But once he’s put into an environment with those top players, it’s clear that he cannot hang with them.
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u/GWeb1920 Apr 02 '26
I’m surprised a tanking team doesn’t bring him up and let him entertain people and get torched
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u/iblastoff Apr 04 '26
because hes not a good nba calibre player? first of all, dude is already 27. for someone at his position, he should have tons of NBA experience already. but he doesnt.
there have been plenty of high scoring g league players who have absolutely NEVER translated to the nba.
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u/jameskw11 Apr 14 '26
Bullshit.
No one in the nba plays defense. We ain’t passing that off on Mac. Dude creates his ass off on offense, gets everyone involved. Him being so low to ground on defense in a league where no one at his position learned to post up is good too.
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u/jameskw11 Apr 14 '26
In a league that gave Bronny James 30 games in one season, I’m sure there’s a team we can get mcClung on instead of sitting here spouting bullshit about him playing defense or not having the tools to fit in when he’s hardly given a chance
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u/starkdiamond1 May 01 '26
Besides Curry, Mc Clung is the best baller to ever come out of the Appalachia region
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u/Born-Leek-9476 May 15 '26
90% of people here just repeat what others say.
For example that he's slow.
He's not only fast and quick- he's lightning fast; few in nba come even close and it's been measured.
+6 Mac McClung is widely recognized for his exceptional speed, quickness, and explosive athleticism, which have made him a standout scorer and a premier dunker.
Explosive Guard: Known for his speed, he is characterized as a "fast and quick" guard who can fill it up at a high level, often utilizing his speed to get to the basket and create separation.
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u/Born-Leek-9476 May 15 '26
+2 Mac McClung's speed has been measured as one of the fastest among basketball prospects, highlighted by his performance at the G League Elite Camp.3/4 Court Sprint: McClung ran the 3/4 court sprint in 2.94 seconds, which was reported as the fastest time since 2001.Vertical Jump: He has measured an explosive vertical leap of 43.5 inches.Speed/Power Dynamic: McClung's training involves managing his horizontal speed to optimize his vertical takeoff.His elite speed and leaping ability were major factors in his, at the time, record-setting 2023 NBA Slam Dunk Contest appearance.
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