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T. J. McConnell

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T. J. McConnell
McConnell with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2015
No. 1 – Philadelphia 76ers
PositionPoint guard
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1992-03-25) March 25, 1992 (age 32)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High schoolChartiers Valley
(Bridgeville, Pennsylvania)
College
NBA draft2015: undrafted
Playing career2015–present
Career history
2015–presentPhiladelphia 76ers
Career highlights and awards
  • AP honorable mention All-American (2015)
  • First-team All-Pac-12 (2015)
  • Second-team All-Pac-12 (2014)
  • 2× Pac-12 All-Defensive Team (2014–2015)
  • Third-team All-Atlantic 10 (2012)
  • Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team (2012)
  • Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year (2011)
  • Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team (2011)
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Timothy John "T. J." McConnell Jr. (born March 25, 1992)[1] is an American professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duquesne Dukes and the Arizona Wildcats.

High school career

McConnell attended Chartiers Valley High School in the Pittsburgh-area borough of Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, where he played for his father, Tim.[2] As the team captain his senior year, he averaged 34.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 9.1 assists per game,[1] earned first-team all-state honors, was named the Associated Press' Pennsylvania Class 3A Player of the Year, and also named the male athlete of the year for all sports by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.[1] He led the Colts to a 29-2 record, the WPIAL championship, and a berth in the Class 3A state championship game as a senior.[3]

College career

T.J. McConnell for Arizona in 2014

As a freshman for Duquesne in 2010–11, McConnell averaged 10.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.8 steals per game in 32 appearances (30 starts), earning 2011 Atlantic 10 Freshman of the Year honors.[1][3]

As a sophomore in 2011–12, he averaged 11.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.8 steals per game, helping the Dukes to a 16-15 record and earning third team All-Atlantic 10 Conference honors and a spot on the A-10 All-Defensive Team.[1][3]

In April 2012, he transferred to Arizona where he was subsequently forced to sit out the 2012–13 season due to NCAA transfer rules.[1][4] McConnell's transfer was motivated by a desire to compete for a national championship.[5]

In the 2013–14 season McConnell helped lead the Wildcats to a 21-0 record to start the season before teammate Brandon Ashley injured his foot and was sidelined for the rest of the season. The season resulted in an Elite 8 appearance for the Wildcats.[6] As a senior, McConnell was voted first-team All-Pac-12 and named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team, and he helped lead Arizona to another appearance in the Elite Eight.[7]

Professional career

Philadelphia 76ers (2015–present)

After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, McConnell joined the Philadelphia 76ers for the 2015 NBA Summer League.[8] On September 27, 2015, he signed with the 76ers.[9] He played well during preseason, averaging 6.2 points and 4.8 assists in five games, earning himself a spot on the 76ers' opening night roster.[10] He went on to make his NBA debut in the team's season opener against the Boston Celtics on October 28. In 27 minutes of action, he recorded four points, four assists and three steals in a 112–95 loss.[11] On February 6, 2016, while starting at point guard in place of the injured Ish Smith, McConnell tied his season high of 17 points in a 103–98 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[12] On March 23, in a loss to the Denver Nuggets, he had a 17-point outing for a third time in 2015–16.[13] At the season's end, he received two votes in the 2016 NBA All-Rookie Team voting.[14]

In July 2016, McConnell re-joined the 76ers for the 2016 NBA Summer League.[15] On December 11, 2016, McConnell had a near triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in a 97–79 win over the Detroit Pistons.[16] On January 6, 2017, he had a career-high 17 assists in a 110–106 loss to the Boston Celtics, becoming just the fourth player in franchise history to hit that mark in a single contest. His total was two off the Philadelphia's all-time record of 19 assists, initially set by Maurice Cheeks in 1987, and later matched by Dana Barros in 1995.[17]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 Philadelphia 81 17 19.8 .470 .348 .634 3.1 4.5 1.2 .1 6.1
Career 81 17 19.8 .470 .348 .634 3.1 4.5 1.2 .1 6.1

Personal life

McConnell's father, Tim, is one of the most successful coaches in WPIAL history[18] and played at Waynesburg College (now Waynesburg University) from 1984 to 1986.[2][19]

His aunt, Suzie McConnell-Serio, was an All-American at Penn State (1985–1988), Olympic gold medalist and WNBA standout prior to being inducted to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008. She started her college coaching career at Duquesne and is currently the head women's basketball coach at the University of Pittsburgh.[1]

Awards and honors

High school
  • AP first-team all-state honors
  • AP Pennsylvania Class 3A Player of the Year
College[1]
  • NCAA Tournament West Region All-Tournament Team (2015)
  • District IX All-District Team USBWA (2015)
  • Pac-12 Tournament All-Tournament Team (2015)
  • First-team All-Pac-12 (2015)
  • Second-team All-Pac-12 (2014)
  • 2x Pac-12 All-Defensive Team (2014, 2015)
  • Third-team All-Atlantic 10 (2012)
  • Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team (2012)
  • Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year (2011)
  • Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team (2011)
  • ECAC Rookie of the Year (2011)
  • CollegeInsider.com Freshman All-America (2011)

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "15 things you probably don't know about T.J. McConnell". Arizona Daily Star. March 20, 2015. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Smith, Nathan (February 4, 2015). "McConnell reaches coaching milestone with Chartiers Valley". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c "T.J. McConnell Biography". ArizonaWildcats.com. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
  4. ^ "Arizona Basketball: Former Duquesne PG T.J. McConnell Transfers to Arizona". Bleacher Report. April 10, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  5. ^ Kilgore, Adam (25 March 2015). "T.J. McConnell's journey from NCAA tournament spectator to Duquesne transfer to Arizona's engine". Washington Post. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  6. ^ Amacher, Ezra (March 31, 2014). "2013-14 Season in Review". PointguardU.com. Gopher Media. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
  7. ^ "2014-15 Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Honors" (Press release). Pac-12. March 9, 2015. Archived from the original on March 9, 2015. {{cite press release}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Las Vegas Summer League Roster & Schedule". NBA.com. July 11, 2015. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  9. ^ "SIXERS ANNOUNCE 2015 TRAINING CAMP ROSTER". NBA.com. September 27, 2015. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  10. ^ White, Mike (October 26, 2015). "Chartiers Valley High School grad T.J. McConnell makes NBA team". Post-Gazette.com. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  11. ^ "Thomas leads Celtics to 112-95 season-opening win over 76ers". NBA.com. October 28, 2015. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
  12. ^ "Okafor, Noel lead 76ers past Nets". NBA.com. February 6, 2016. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  13. ^ "T.J. McConnell 2015-16 Game Log". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
  14. ^ "Wolves' Towns, Knicks' Porzingis lead 2015-16 NBA All-Rookie teams". NBA.com. May 19, 2016. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
  15. ^ Boyd, Ray (July 1, 2016). "Ben Simmons Headlines Sixers Summer League Roster". CBSLocal.com. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  16. ^ "Covington scores 16 for 76ers in 97-79 win over Pistons". ESPN.com. December 11, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
  17. ^ Seltzer, Brian (January 6, 2017). "Game Recap: Celtics Outlast Sixers, 110-106". NBA.com. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  18. ^ McConnell wins 500th game at Chartiers Valley
  19. ^ Sixers guard defies the odds The McConnell Way
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