Summary

McKinnie had an excellent start to the '18-'19 season, hitting outside shots at a high rate and playing consistent minutes for the championship-favorite Warriors. As the season went on, McKinnie started to cool down for outside, and eventually Steve Kerr decided McKinnie was not reliable enough to get consistent playoff minutes. With the Warriors in desperate need of quality wing play this upcoming season, McKinnie can greatly improve his market in free agency if he emerges from the group as a reliable player at the wing.

 

McKinnie is a great offensive rebounder, finishing at the top of the league for his position on offensive rebounding rate, and his defensive rebounding numbers were similar. At 6'8", McKinnie has intrigue has a small-ball four that can defend multiple positions, stretch the floor, and rebound. 

 

Cap Considerations

McKinnie's $1.8 million salary for 2020-2021 is non-guaranteed, so he may be waived by the Cavaliers if they feel they can make better use of the roster spot. If the Cavs waive McKinnie, they will have no form of his Bird rights, and would have to use cap space (if they operate under the cap), or their Mid-Level Exception or Bi-Annual Exception (if they operate over the cap) to re-sign him, or he would need to return on a minimum contract.

 

Other teams will have multiple ways to sign McKinnie as even teams without cap space could possibly use any of the Non-Taxpayer, Taxpayer, or Room Mid-Level Exceptions to sign him. He could also potentially be had with only a minimum contract.