T.J. McConnell was still paying cover charges to get into Philadelphia bars as late as last spring.
Since then, the former Duquesne and Chartiers Valley High School guard has become something of a cult hero for 76ers fans. His scrappy style paired with respectable stats of 6.9 points, 6.6 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game this past season have resonated with a franchise trying to get back onto the NBA map after years of losing.
He remains rather invisible on a national level, especially after the 76ers used the first overall pick of last month’s NBA draft on another point guard, Markelle Fultz of Washington. One anonymous Eastern Conference center, however, had high praise for McConnell over at Hoops Hype.
“The most underrated player in the NBA is TJ McConnell from the Sixers. If you just look at his stats, they’re never going to jump out at you, but that little f***er is tough. He’s a tough kid. I remember thinking, ‘Oh, I’ll just screen this little white boy and lay him out,’ but he fights through every screen. He’s gritty and he doesn’t back down from anyone. It’s hard being a point guard in today’s NBA because you’re going against a star most nights, but he holds his own. He demands respect every single night. If you don’t respect him entering the game, you’ll respect him by the second half.”
McConnell’s future in Philly is muddy with Fultz now in the fold. But if he keeps hitting game-winning shots like the one he delivered against the New York Knicks back in January, it’s likely more and more opponents will echo similar sentiments about his game.
Adam Bittner: abittner@post-gazette.com and Twitter, @fugimaster24.
First Published: July 10, 2017, 7:21 p.m.