Ranking every Philadelphia 76ers player on the 2018-19 roster
8. T.J. McConnell
It’s fair to say that T.J. McConnell had the best season of his career last year. He saw a career high in field goal and 3-point shooting percentages while putting up a consistent stat line that lines up with his career averages. McConnell was relied upon heavily as the only other reliable point guard on the roster besides Ben Simmons.
Sadly, fans shouldn’t expect McConnell to see as much floor time due to the expected emergence of former first overall pick Markelle Fultz. Fultz should have the ball in his hands for the majority of the time when playing in the second unit with McConnell.
Seeing as one of McConnell’s best skills is being a playmaker, expect his impact on the floor to be diminished significantly. However, as long as he can maintain his defensive grit and his 3-point percentage around last season’s mark of 43.5 percent, he should still be able to co-exist with Fultz.
Being in a contract year and looking at a reduced role, it could be in his best interest if the Philadelphia 76ers where to trade him to another team. In the past, I have written about the possibility of him going to the Phoenix Suns. In that article, I reviewed the possible financial ramifications of keeping McConnell past this season.
However, looking at the present moment keeping McConnell would definitely give the Sixers quality depth at the point guard position. McConnell’s value as a member of “The Process” and defensive identity is unquestioned. He will most likely see a reduced role within the Sixers rotation, however he should still be a quality playmaker and defender when his number is called.