The Sixer Sense
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T.J. McConnell continues to overcome unfavorable odds

By Christopher Kline

PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 25: T.J. McConnell #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts against the Houston Rockets at the Wells Fargo Center on October 25, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 25: T.J. McConnell #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts against the Houston Rockets at the Wells Fargo Center on October 25, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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Despite unfavorable odds, T.J. McConnell is still making valuable contributions for the Philadelphia 76ers.

It wasn’t too long ago that T.J. McConnell went undrafted out of Arizona. He spent the 2014-15 season as the Wildcats’ primary catalyst on both ends, but lacked the athletic and skill profile of your typical NBA point guard.

Then McConnell showed out with the Philadelphia 76ers‘ summer league team, earning a camp invite that eventually turned into a roster spot. Considering this was a mid-Process roster, there wasn’t much guard depth standing in the way of McConnell and a legitimate role.

Even as a non-factor scoring the ball, McConnell’s playmaking and defense led him to starting 17 games in his rookie year — a number that was stretched to 51 last season. He’s the kind of gritty defender that gets in opponents’ heads, whether it be with timely steals or on-ball pressure.

Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers /

Philadelphia 76ers

That also energizes the group around him. His turnovers get the offense moving up and down, while both the bench and his teammates find themselves rallying behind a lot of things he does on the defensive end.

He’s questionably listed at 6-foot-2, short-armed and a mediocre athlete by NBA standards, yet still chugged along as one of the Sixers’ most influential players during the team’s stellar January-February stretch last season.

That just doesn’t happen all that often. Especially not for somebody who can’t shoot and was never considered an NBA prospect during his four-year collegiate run.

This season was supposed to be different, though. Jerryd Bayless is healthy and Markelle Fultz is stepping in as the reigning No. 1 pick. That led most to believe McConnell would be phased out of the rotation, operating solely as an occasional third-string spark plug. But Brett Brown couldn’t see that happening, and McConnell has taken the liberty to — yet again — remind us of why it can’t.

The dude grinds. It’s genuinely that simply, and that’s part of the appeal that comes with watching him play. Nobody tries harder. Nobody is as willing to gun full speed down court to steal an inbounds pass like McConnell, much less put in that energy on every single defensive possession, regardless of who he’s guarding or if he’s on or off the ball.

He’s one of the league’s more effective defensive point guards because of that energy alone. He had moments in Wednesday night’s loss to the Rockets where he put the clamps on James Harden — who’s bigger, stronger and miles ahead of almost anybody in terms of skill. Nobody with McConnell’s frame should provide resistance to a player of Harden’s ilk, yet McConnell did so with a level of success that nobody else on the Sixers’ roster could muster.

He put up six points, nine assists and six steals in that game against Houston, stepping in admirably in some of the extra time that would have otherwise gone to the now-sidelined Fultz. He’s not the same systematic fit that Bayless is, but you could make a convincing argument for McConnell being the most effective (non-Ben Simmons) point guard on the team through the first five games.

For somebody who wasn’t supposed to play, that isn’t a terrible discussion to be in.

Next: Sixers' ideal end-of-game lineups

McConnell embodies everything Philly is, from the heart to The Process the city so openly embraced over the past four years. The odds may not be in his favor all that often, but that doesn’t seem to matter.