Kevin McCullar becomes latest Kansas Jayhawks standout to win NBA championship
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- Kevin McCullar became the 17th University of Kansas player to win an NBA championship.
- McCullar spent the 2025-26 season on a two‑way contract with New York and Westchester.
- McCullar enters the offseason as a restricted free agent with Knicks able to match deals.
Kevin McCullar is the 17th basketball player from the University of Kansas to win an NBA title.
McCullar, a 6-foot-7, 215-pound shooting guard out of San Antonio, Texas, became a champion Saturday night when his New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals in his hometown. The Knicks won the series four games to one.
McCullar, a 25-year-old second-year player, has become the ninth Jayhawk to play for KU head coach Bill Self to win an NBA title.
He joins Wayne Simien (2006, Miami), Mario Chalmers (2012, 2013, Miami), Brandon Rush (2015, Golden State), Sasha Kaun (2016, Cleveland), Markieff Morris (2020, Lakers), Andrew Wiggins (2022, Golden State), Christian Braun (2023, Denver) and Svi Mykhailiuk (2024, Boston).
This marks the fourth time in five years a former KU player has won an NBA championship (McCullar, Mykhailiuk, Braun and Wiggins). Morris won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.
KU legends Wilt Chamberlain (1972, Lakers), Jo Jo White (1976, Boston) and Paul Pierce (2008, Boston) were Jayhawks who were also named NBA Finals Most Valuable Players.
Other Jayhawks to win NBA titles who did not play for Self: Clyde Lovellette (1954, Minneapolis; 1963, 1964 Boston); Maurice King (1960, Boston); Bill Bridges (1975, Golden State); Jacque Vaughn (2007, San Antonio); Scot Pollard (2008, Boston).
McCullar spent the 2025-26 season on a two-way contract with the Knicks and Westchester Knicks of the G League. He practiced but did not enter any games during the Knicks’ postseason run to the title under terms of his contract prohibiting him from suiting up in the playoffs.
Overall he successfully came back from knee surgery to play in 21 regular season games for New York this past season. He averaged 2.4 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists per contest. He was 20-of-47 (.426) from the field and 8-of-24 from 3 (.333).
McCullar logged 7.4 minutes a game in the 21 games. During his rookie year (2024-25), the second-round NBA Draft pick played in just four games total.
McCullar’s finest game of the 2025-26 season was a 14-point, two-rebound, two-steal outing against Charlotte on April 12 at Madison Square Garden in New York. He was 6-of-11 from the field and 2-of-6 from 3 in the 110-96 loss. He had 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting (3-of-6 from 3) with eight rebounds in a road win over Atlanta on Dec. 27. He played 23 minutes in that game.
He averaged 16.8 points a game on 46.7% shooting (25-of-73 for 34.2%) in 10 games for G League team Westchester.
McCullar, who started his college career at Texas Tech, played two seasons at KU. He averaged 18.3 points and 6.3 rebounds for the Jayhawks in 2023-24. He earned first-team all-Big 12 honors his senior campaign. He was originally the No. 56 overall pick by the Phoenix Suns in the 2024 NBA Draft before his rights were moved to the Knicks.
He enters this offseason as a restricted free agent. According to hoopshype.com he made $636,000 this past season. Because of his restricted free agent status, the Knicks retain matching rights for any offers he receives, giving them the option to bring him back for a third season with the team.
