The Europeans Are Coming! The Europeans Are Coming!

I Come From The Land Down Under

Yes… Australia is not Europe… but don’t fail me on geography because I’m including the hopes of this young man’s NBA career in this article. Jordan McRae is a young man who had been stashed by the Sixers in Australia for a year. Now rumor has it that he’s coming home to compete for a roster spot.

McRae is a 6’4″ shooting guard from the University of Tennessee and averaged 21.0 points per game with the 76ers summer league team in 2014. McRae was tendered a one-year league minimum by the Sixers in 2014, and rejected the offer. That gave him the right to sign in Australia, and gave the Sixer’s the right to his play in the NBA.  In Melbourne, McRae averaged 21.8 points per game. That’s offense, and that is sorely needed on this team.

Melbourne is also a city quite familiar to head coach Brett Brown:

"“[McRae] plays in a city that I lived in for 12 years and for the team I started my coaching career.  I know his situation intimately.  It does not have the skill of Europe.  It has a physicality unlike most leagues around the world. China is a free flowing … 120-110 games happen all the time. Europe is more chess match, a little more surgical and deliberate.  Australia is a hybrid of all that. There is a physical presence in the game. You get tough Australians who are going after [McRae] every night because he is the leading scorer in the league. He must be doing a pretty good job on how to get a shot off and take the punishment because that is a very physical league.We are always paying attention to Jordan. He is in a good situation. He is playing a lot of minutes. He continues to score. He is always in the back of our minds. What that means with what we intend to do with him now, that doesn’t change too much. We are aware of his success. We are aware of the successes of all our guys overseas.”  – Brett Brown discusses McRae in Melbourne"

So could Jordan McRae be assigned to a foreign league?  The team would need to tender an offer and be rejected again.   If no contract is tendered, he would be free to negotiate elsewhere.

What will Sam Hinkie do?  Only time will tell.

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