Philadelphia 76ers: 5 opponents the fans will actually cheer for

1. T.J. McConnell

Sat., December 30, 7 p.m. 

How do 76ers fans feel about T.J. McConnell? Put it this way, my wife is a season ticket holder and when news hit that T.J. was leaving , she was totally distraught — and really has still not gotten over it.

All Sixers fans loved T.J.  (no one calls him McConnell, he is T.J. or ‘Teej’ to true fans.)

Even if his lack of an outside shot or limited defensive abilities due to his slight 6-foot-2 build might have bothered some people, everyone loved his grit and determination. No one questioned that T.J. gave 100 percent every time he played, and that is all most Philly fans want.

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McConnell also has the rags-to-riches story fans love. He is not from Philadelphia but he is a Pennsylvanian, having grown up in the Western part of the state

Coming out of Arizona, no one drafted T.J. but Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie was willing to take a chance on him. After all, it wasn’t like Hinkie wanted players who would win games; he was looking for ‘diamonds in the rough’ who might blossom in the future, when they would want to win.

T.J. made the team as a rookie (a season in which they won 10 games, one more than the NBA record for fewest victories) and steadily worked on his game. His hustle made him the hero of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against Boston, the only game the Sixers won.

Always the supportive teammate, T.J. was nothing but encouraging when Markelle Fultz supplanted him as the backup point guard (after Fultz flamed out as starting shooting guard because of … you know).

However, on Nov. 19, 2018, coach Brett Brown played McConnell in the second half over Fultz in a close game with Phoenix. Fultz’s agent pulled him off the team the next day to find the problem he said Fultz had with his shoulder, and he never played a game again until Orlando’s preseason in October 2019.

McConnell’s passion, hustle and spirit was appreciated throughout the NBA. Even LeBron James wanted to play with him as Cleveland made a play for him in January 2017, but the Sixers turned them down.

When the free agent signing whirlwind started on July 1, the 76ers pointedly did not sign a point guard. It looked like the Sixers would bring back T.J., and the fans rejoiced.

However, on July 3 the news Sixers fans dreaded came down: T.J. had signed a two-year, $7 million contract with the Indiana Pacers.

The Sixers went on to sign Raul Neto and a later on, Trey Burke, to battle for T.J.’s position of backup point guard

That T.J. would no longer be part of the team made many Sixers fans sad. Besides Embiid, McConnell was the last player who played when Hinkie was GM; it seemed like the end of ‘The Process’ was official. Even for those who thought it was time to move on, they had to admire what McConnell brought to the table every night.

My wife? She wants to blow off a planned cruise so she can see T.J. when he returns in late November.

What will T.J.’s reception be when he takes the court?: Standing ovation every time he goes into the game.