![\"Ben_McLemore_Ray_McCallum\"](\"http:\/\/cowbellkingdom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Ben_McLemore_Ray_McCallum.jpg\")
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As gramps used to say, slow and steady wins the race. It\u2019s a concept Ray McCallum abides by, even as Sacramento Kings fans may have unfairly heightened expectations on the second-year point guard.<\/p>\n
McCallum was drafted 36th overall in 2013 out of Detroit Mercy as a junior. The Kings were enamored with\u00a0the potential he showed to be a complete floor general\u00a0on offense and a perimeter stopper on the defensive end, signing the 6-foot-3, 190-pounder to a three-year contract.<\/p>\n
But entering training camp last year, McCallum was an inconsistent shooter and decision-maker. \u00a0He found himself buried on the depth chart behind Greivis Vasquez, Isaiah Thomas and Jimmer Fredette. Two reassignments to the Reno Bighorns over the course of the season gave the impression that he wasn\u2019t ready for the NBA.<\/p>\n
Soon enough McCallum caught his break. After Vasquez was traded to the Toronto Raptors on December 9 and Fredette was waived\u00a0 February 27, Thomas and McCallum were the only point guards left on the roster. The veteran went down with an deep thigh bruise \u00a0in mid-March, forcing the rookie to start 10 of the last 12 games of the season. \u00a0He responded by averaging 13.5 points on 37.9 percent shooting, 6.8 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.9 turnovers in 42.2 minutes a contest.<\/p>\n
Followed with a stellar Summer League showing which landed him MVP of the tournament, observers assumed he would play a more crucial role and possibly start with Thomas out of the picture. But the Kings signed Darren Collison early in free agency and added Ramon Sessions a week before training camp began. Rather than be discouraged, McCallum decided to make the most of his free courtside view.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I\u2019m sitting there (on the bench), I\u2019m constantly watching the game and just learning,\u201d McCallum told Cowbell Kindgom <\/em>on Monday. \u201cLearning from my teammates, and from the players on the other team. Just seeing what I can and can\u2019t do when I\u2019m out there, seeing the mistakes that anyone makes, and seeing all the things that guys on the court do right. I think that\u2019s (going to) strengthen my game.\u201d<\/p>\n This season, McCallum is logging just 8.5 minutes a night as head coach Michael Malone subs him in as defensive specialist. In 12 appearances, the 23-year-old is holding opposing 3-point shooters to 18.2 percent from behind the arc, more than justifying his playing time.<\/p>\n In his limited action, McCallum is also getting shots, and he\u2019s marked a significant improvement in field goal shooting to 42.9 percent, up from 37.7 percent a year ago. A skilled driver, McCallum\u2019s jumper still needs work, as he\u2019s hitting 23.1 percent of his 3-pointers which account for 46.4 percent of his total attempts, but he says that\u2019s one of his main focuses of improvement this season.<\/p>\n McCallum credits the whole Kings organization for helping him along, but highlighted one coach and former NBA player in particular who\u2019s been in his corner since puberty.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a pretty strong relationship with (Kings assistant) coach Dee Brown,\u201d McCallum said. \u201cI\u2019ve known him since middle school. Going to all the Nike camps and AAU camps and all the Nike stuff in the summer time. Someone I\u2019ve always worked out with a lot, and when I was living in Detroit, he was with the Pistons. So we do have a strong relationship. We\u2019ve known each other for a long time. That\u2019s my player development coach, and we work out every day.\u201d<\/p>\n Of course, the basketball coach that\u2019s mentored McCallum since day one, his dad, Ray McCallum Sr., also remains supportive of his son every day over the phone.<\/p>\n \u201c(He tells me) just keep working,\u201d McCallum spoke of his dad who coached him at Detroit Mercy. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of things in this league you can\u2019t control, but the one thing you can always control is the work you put in and how hard you work. So that\u2019s what he\u2019s always stressing to me, just continue to go in there every day, don\u2019t take any days off of work, and just keep getting better.\u201d<\/p>\n Between 102 regular season\u00a0minutes (lowest on the Kings to Eric Moreland’s two minutes) and 10\u00a0DNP\u2019s this season, McCallum and the bench have become acquainted. But you don\u2019t see the NBA sophomore goofing off or chatting with fans on the sideline, because his attention is on the sequence\u00a0at hand. McCallum understands there is much to pull from live action, in addition to film study.<\/p>\n As one observer told\u00a0Cowbell Kingdom<\/em>, McCallum\u00a0wasn’t prepared\u00a0to play last season, but circumstance pulled\u00a0him into action. He’s ready to contribute this year, but he’s waiting for the opportunity.<\/p>\n McCallum has all the physical tools and the smarts to be a successful starting point guard in the NBA. He\u2019s putting in the work behind the scenes to ensure there\u2019s no regrets when his professional career is all said and done.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ray McCallum bides his time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[610259261],"tags":[610260249,610260460,790026,522941,15283471,76563],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n