JaVale Lindy McGee is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for
the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association. He was selected 18th overall
by the Washington Wizards in the 2008 NBA Draft.
High school and college McGee was born in Flint, Michigan, and attended
two high schools in Michigan: Detroit Country Day School and Providence Christian, before
transferring to Hales Franciscan High School in Chicago. McGee was the starting center
for the University of Nevada. According to Hales Franciscan coach Gary London, McGee's
natural position in college was ideally small forward, and that he could play both forward
spots. After his sophomore campaign, in which he averaged 14.3 points and 7.3 rebounds,
shooting 53 percent from the field and 33 percent from three-point range, McGee decided
to hire an agent and declare for the 2008 NBA Draft.
NBA career Washington Wizards
McGee was selected 18th overall by the Wizards in the 2008 NBA Draft. On July 9, 2008, he
signed a two-year, $2.4 million deal with the Wizards.
On January 9, 2010, McGee was fined $10,000 by the Wizards for participating in Gilbert
Arenas' antics before a game on January 5, 2010 against the Philadelphia 76ers. Arenas
was being investigated for a prior incident involving guns in the Wizards' locker room,
but made light of the accusations by pointing his finger at his teammates, as if he were
shooting them. His teammates were photographed smiling and laughing with him.
On January 6, 2011, McGee was chosen to participate in the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. McGee was
the first Wizard to ever participate in the contest. He finished in second place, losing
to Blake Griffin. McGee was the first player to use three balls at one time in a dunk contest,
which was later cited by the Guinness World Records as the most basketballs dunked in
a single jump. The third ball was passed to him from teammate John Wall.
On March 15, 2011, in a 98–79 loss against the Chicago Bulls, McGee notched his first
career triple-double, recording 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 blocks. His career high
12 blocks was the most since Keon Clark had 12 on March 23, 2001. However, he received
some criticism for taking ill-advised shots in the fourth quarter to ensure he reached
10 points while his team was being blown out, and even received a technical foul for excessive
celebration by pulling himself on the rim after a dunk for his final points. Television
commentator Kevin McHale called it a "bad triple-double". In response to the criticism,
McGee said, "I got a triple-double. Who can say they got a triple-double? I’m not really
worried about it." McGee became known for his eccentric playing style, which sometimes
resulted in uncommon plays. McGee averaged over 8 rebounds and 10 points over the 2011
and 2012 seasons with the Wizards. Denver Nuggets
On March 15, 2012, McGee was traded to the Nuggets along with Ronny Turiaf in a deal
that sent Nenê to the Wizards. As a member of the Wizards, he started 40 of 41 games
in which he appeared; with the Nuggets, he would start in 5 of 20 games in which he appeared.
His minutes would also be reduced, averaging 27.4 with Washington but 20.6 with Denver.
On March 21, in his Nuggets debut, McGee made the game-winning dunk off an Arron Afflalo
missed free throw with 5 seconds left on the clock. At the end of the regular season, the
Nuggets earned the West's sixth seed, and McGee appeared in the 2012 NBA Playoffs, which
was his first playoff appearance in his career. McGee's series-high was 21 points in Game
5 against first-round opponent Los Angeles Lakers. McGee's numbers were up and down throughout
the series, including Game 7, when he scored just 6 points on 1-7 shooting in 32 minutes
of floor time. On July 18, 2012, McGee re-signed with the Nuggets on a four-year, $44 million
contract. McGee's 2013–14 season was ended on February
20, 2014 when he underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left tibia in which
he sustained on November 8, 2013. International
McGee received an invite to the United States men's national basketball team's mini camp
in the summer of 2009 and again in the summer of 2010. McGee played with Team USA in a scrimmage
at Radio City Music Hall during the 2010 World Basketball Festival but after an uneven performance
he did not play in the team's scrimmage against China at Madison Square Garden and was cut
on August 15, 2010. McGee visited the Philippines twice during
the 2011 NBA lockout, first in exhibition games with NBA stars against players from
the Philippine Basketball Association and the Smart Gilas national team, and then in
a basketball clinic. McGee was asked by the Gilas Pilipinas to
take part as a naturalized player for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain and
the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. The naturalization process is ongoing.
Miscellaneous His father, 6'10" George Montgomery, was a
1985 second-round draft selection by the Portland Trail Blazers. His mother, Pamela McGee, was
a USC standout and WNBA star for the Los Angeles Sparks and Sacramento Monarchs. McGee is the
first son of a WNBA player to ever play in the NBA.
McGee had the largest documented armspan of any current NBA player at 7 ft 6.5 in until
the Nuggets drafted Rudy Gobert, with an armspan at 7 ft 8.5 in in the 2013 NBA Draft. He
has been featured regularly on Inside the NBA's basketball blooper feature "Shaqtin'
a Fool". McGee has expressed displeasure at his frequent appearance on the segment.
In 2013, it was announced that McGee would be starring in his own reality television
show, Mom’s Got Game, with his mother. NBA career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
See also List of National Basketball Association players
with 10 or more blocks in a game Notes
External links Career statistics and player information from
NBA.com, or Basketball-Reference.com ESPN.com Profile