CJ McCollum set a Washington Wizards franchise record just a few days ago, but that didn't stop the guard from proving exactly why the team has to do everything they can to move on from him ahead of the NBA trade deadline in February.
Days removed from dropping 46 points in the Wizards second win of the season and first NBA Cup victory in team history, Washington big offseason addition found himself proving exactly why even his veteran leadership isn't a big enough reason for the team to keep him on the roster beyond this season.
In 30 minutes, McCollum finished with 11 points, two assists and one rebounds, while shooting 5/13 from field goal range and 1/5 from beyond the arc in the team's 119-86 blowout loss on the road against the struggling Indiana Pacers.
Ending the game with a +/- of -20, McCollum's poor play only added to the team's problems with nearly every player not named Alex Sarr absolutely putting together an abysmal performance in the loss.
On a steep contract, the Wizards are going to find it extremely difficult to offload the veteran's contract, even with it expiring after this season.
Unless a desperate contending team is willing to send out the outgoing salary and to make a deal work, the overwhelming reality is that Washington will be forced to agree to a contract buyout with McCollum if they hope to move on from the playmaker.
Obviously, moving on from Jordan Poole's long-term contract this offseason was worth the return of taking on the veteran guard's expiring contract.
By the off chance McCollum proved to have plenty left in the tank and put together a star-like season, Washington could very easily turn his expiring deal into a trade that allowed the team to bring in additional talent or draft assets.
Despite that, while McCollum has shown flashes of having some gas left in the tank, he's also shown that his inconsistency isn't exactly what could get a team over the hump, at least not what we've seen from him in previous years or this season.
That said, the end result for McCollum's tenure in Washington likely comes down to the team biting the bullet and giving the 34-year-old a chance at a fresh start on the open market as a buyout candidate.
Regardless, the Wizards need to move on and open up room for young playmakers on the roster to develop, especially guard's like Bub Carrington and AJ Johnson, who have a better chance of being a long-term fit than McCollum does.