Philadelphia 76ers should abandon T.J. McConnell in the postseason

The Philadelphia 76ers should be hesitant to use T.J. McConnell in the playoffs.

With the Philadelphia 76ers officially locked into the No. 3 seed, the regular season’s final two games should be uneventful. Brett Brown needs to prioritize rest over last-minute chemistry building, giving all five starters extended time on the bench.

Once the postseason hits, of course, those starters will be thrust into even larger roles. Both Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler will presumably see an uptick in minutes, while Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris will continue to carry a heavy burden.

The Sixers will benefit from shorter playoff rotations as long as the core pieces stay healthy. One such benefit will be cutting down on minutes in the second unit. The main casualty should be T.J. McConnell.

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Brett Brown continues to show faith in the former undrafted free agent, but McConnell simply hasn’t performed up to expectations this season. His weaknesses are more evident than in years past, with his size and athleticism (or lack thereof) putting him at a serious disadvantage on most defensive possessions.

Over his last 10 games, McConnell is averaging just 4.6 points and 1.7 assists in 15.4 minutes per contest. He’s shooting 42.9 percent from the field — considerably below his season average — and defenses are willing to leave him unguarded on the perimeter.

In the postseason, teams will target non-shooters. Unlike Ben Simmons, McConnell lacks the physical tools to overcome well-oiled defenses who are ignoring him more often than not. It’s just not a recipe for success in 2019.

The Sixers need McConnell last postseason for two reasons — Markelle Fultz struggled and the Sixers were devoid of capable halfcourt shot creators. That’s different this season. Fultz is gone, but Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris both fill that void with flying colors.

Assuming Brown leans into his staggered rotations, he can keep at least one of Simmons and Butler on the floor at all times. Whenever that’s the case, there’s no reason to have McConnell handling the ball and suffocating the paint.

James Ennis‘ quad injury will make it different to bench McConnell entirely, but upon his return, there’s no real reason for the Sixers to rely on the diminutive lead guard. Mike Scott, Jonah Bolden and Ennis should be Brown’s core pieces in the second unit.

Assuming the Sixers want to go nine-deep on occasion, there’s reason to believe Zhaire Smith can handle spot minutes. It’s difficult for inexperienced rookies to survive in the postseason, but Smith has shown enough promise as an on-ball defender to have some theoretical value. Shake Milton will be unavailable on a two-way contract.

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Brown needs to let go of McConnell at some point. The Sixers are viable contenders and McConnell brings far more bad than good. It’s time to move the rotations around to account for that.