NBA Slam Dunk, Blue Coats G League champ McClung moving from 76ers to Orlando
If Mac McClung wins the NBA Slam Dunk or G League titles this upcoming season, it will not be representing the Philadelphia 76ers and their Delaware Blue Coats affiliate.
The free agent guard signed with the Orlando Magic this week and could play for Orlando and/or its G League Osceola Magic.
McClung averaged 19.8 points, 4.9 assists and 2.7 rebounds while sparking the Blue Coats to their first G League title last season and became a crowd favorite at the Chase Fieldhouse. He also averaged 12.5 points in a pair of games with the 76ers.
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A former Georgetown and Texas Tech player, McClung made his biggest headlines, however, when, in 76ers gear, he won the NBA’s Slam Dunk contest with several prolific deliveries.
In a question-and-answer session this summer with USA Today’s Sixers Wire, McClung raved about his experiences last season.
“I thought we had a great year in the G League, Delaware,” he said. “Personally and as a team, it was so, so fun. Winning the championship, being a part of the dunk contest, playing in the Rising Stars game. It was just a lot of fun.”
Looking ahead, McClung saw the opportunity to further advance his career this coming season.
“I shot 48% from 3, 56% from the field, won the championship, averaged 32 and seven in the championship finals,” he said. “When I got my turn in the NBA that last game, I really felt like I showed my point-guard ability and my defense and a winning ability, having 20 [points against the Brooklyn Nets]. That that was a big confidence boost for me.
“So it was like, I don’t know what’s going to happen here, but I know that I gave everything I had and I’m not attached to certain achievements, so just getting better each year, and that was the thing this year. I knew I got better from the year before.”
The 76ers preferred other potential two-way players over McClung moving forward, according to reports.
In exchange for McClung, the Blue Coats received the returning player rights to Jeff Dowtin, the 6-3 point guard who played in 25 games last year for the Toronto Raptors under new Sixers coach Nick Nurse, and a second-round pick in the 2024 G League Draft.
The Blue Coats open Nov. 10 against the Westchester Knicks at Chase Fieldhouse.
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: NBA slam dunk champ Mac McClung leaves 76ers and Blue Coats for Magic
