Former Kansas Jayhawks basketball guard Kevin McCullar made his highly anticipated professional debut on Thursday night. The 6-foot-6, 210-pound, 23-year-old San Antonio native, selected by the Phoenix Suns with the 56th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft and immediately traded to the New York Knicks, played for two seasons at KU. In his first game with the Westchester Knicks, McCullar scored 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting, adding one assist, one steal, and one turnover in a 119-111 G League loss to the Osceola Magic at Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Florida. He also went 0-for-3 from beyond the arc and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line in 16 minutes of play.
“Man, after a long year, it felt good to be back out there competing! God is so good,” McCullar posted on X Thursday night. A knee injury kept him from participating in KU’s 2023-24 postseason. His last appearance as a Jayhawk was on March 9, 2014, in the regular-season finale at Houston, where he played for 15 minutes. McCullar missed KU’s Big 12 Tournament game against Cincinnati and the two NCAA Tournament games (a win over Samford and a loss to Gonzaga) due to a bone bruise in his knee. During his senior season, McCullar averaged 18.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.1 assists over 26 games. He played at KU in 2022-23 and 2023-24 after transferring from Texas Tech, where he had played three seasons. McCullar missed six of the final 12 games of the previous season while receiving knee treatment.
“I have done everything that I possibly could have done to get back playing at a high level to help my team,” McCullar said before the 2024 Big 12 Tournament. “This included 6-7 hours a day with the training staff at Kansas for over a month now, while not participating in practice but competing in games. While trying various treatment options, it’s simply not where it needs to be to play the game.”
McCullar wasn’t able to participate in the NBA Combine or in drills for NBA teams prior to the draft. After the Knicks traded for the pick with Phoenix, they selected McCullar in the second round. He also missed the NBA Summer League and training camp while rehabbing his knee. In August, the Knicks signed McCullar to a two-way contract.