A day after being waived by the Pistons, former first-round pick Chris McCullough appears to have lined up a new professional opportunity.
According to a pair of reports from Emiliano Carchia of Sportando, McCullough is poised to sign with the Shanxi Brave Dragons in China, replacing veteran NBA forward Trevor Booker, who is said to be parting ways with the club.
Booker, who reached a one-year agreement with Shanxi two months ago, reportedly signed a one-year contract worth $2MM plus incentives. It’s not clear why the union between the two sides is coming to such an early end, but if Booker is officially released and receives FIBA clearance, he’ll be a candidate to join an NBA team at some point this season. He’s said to have received interest from the Cavaliers, Heat, and Timberwolves before signing with Shanxi.
As for McCullough, the former Nets and Wizards forward joined the Pistons for training camp, but was released by Detroit on Sunday. The 23-year-old, who was drafted 29th overall in 2015, has appeared in 59 total regular season games for Brooklyn and Washington, averaging 3.3 PPG and 1.9 RPG in 9.0 minutes per contest.
Assuming he finalizes a deal with Shanxi, McCullough will get an opportunity for more playing time in China. He’ll clear waivers on Tuesday if no NBA team places a claim.