CJ McCollum admits new CBA ‘is not perfect’

McCollum expanded on the deal’s broader impact, highlighting both its improvements and remaining challenges.

“But from a statistical standpoint, we’re heading in a really good direction – guys are making more money and the mid-level is not being neglected and the statistics show it,” he said. “Although, there are some things that can be improved upon in the CBA. Obviously, we talk about the second apron, we talk about aggregating salaries, and there’s a lot more player movement right now… people have talked about free agency and how there’s changes.”

He noted that increased parity across the league and active player movement have created a more dynamic environment, but reiterated the deal was not made to serve individual interests.

“This wasn’t a ‘my agenda’ type of situation. We had a collective bargaining agreement to try to do what’s best for the players and things were proposed and we had to have a conversation about it to kind of figure out what’s best,” McCollum said.

Player dialogue and union gains seen as vital to future CBA improvements

He emphasized the importance of ongoing dialogue among players to help shape future negotiations.

“All-in-all I think we’re heading in a good direction… and the more dialogue we can have, the more conversation that we can have in terms of ways to grow the game, the more players can continue to voice their thoughts and opinions, more so amongst us as players so that we can go to the bargaining table and have those discussions, I think it’ll be better,” he added. “But I think the game has grown immensely from 2013 to 2025. Guys make more money, our licensing checks have increased and you look at the TV deal and look at some of things we’ve negotiated on behalf of the players through the union, including our 2K deal, like we’re doing really well.”

McCollum recently concluded his 12th NBA season, averaging 21.1 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.8 rebounds in 56 games with the New Orleans Pelicans. He was traded to Washington this offseason in a deal that sent Jordan Poole, Saddiq Bey, and the No. 40 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft—used to select Micah Peavy—to New Orleans.

CJ McCollum served as the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) President from 2021 until 2025. He was succeeded by Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet earlier this offseason.