Tag: PJ Tucker

Sixers’ Nick Nurse wishes James Harden, PJ Tucker well with Clippers

Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse wishes James Harden and PJ Tucker well with the Los Angeles Clippers after the trade.

PHILADELPHIA — There will be significant fallout for the Philadelphia 76ers after sending James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers. Numerous eyes will be on both teams to see what comes next as each organization makes its move.

The Sixers now prepare for the next move, which is expected to include assets acquired in the Harden deal. The Clippers, meanwhile, look to mesh their roster on their own chase for a championship.

Coach Nick Nurse admitted on Thursday before a win over the Toronto Raptors that he believed there was a chance he would coach Harden, but it was also a bit of a roller-coaster ride for him.

“I think that I thought the chances were pretty low once it kinda went like this a little bit (imitating the ups and downs of a roller coaster),” said Nurse. “When he opted in, I went ‘Oh, I’m gonna get a chance to coach him’ and then stuff happened and I was like ‘Ah’ just kinda up and down a little bit so there was times. Yeah.”

When Harden was with the Sixers and practicing before the trade, he was a true professional.

“I will say this, everybody,” Nurse added. “He was in shape, worked extremely hard, was extremely professional while he was here, and he looked awesome. He really did while he was here. Just never could get to the game part of it all.”

Included in the Harden deal was PJ Tucker. The Sixers acquired Tucker early in free agency in 2022, signing him to a three-year deal. His numbers never showed it, but his impact was undeniable and Nurse knows Philadelphia will miss him.

“Listen, we’re gonna miss him,” Nurse explained of Tucker. “I know it’s hard to sometimes believe when you go down, you look at a game, and he’s 0-for-1 and 0, 0, 0, 0, maybe four rebounds, and how impactful he is in a game. I guarantee you there were some guys in our conference who breathed a sigh of relief to see him thrown in that deal.”

There were plenty of times Tucker changed a game for the Sixers. He would light a fire underneath some guys and demand more of them. That isn’t seen in the box score.

“He is a game influencer. A game changer,” Nurse finished on Tucker. “So we’ll miss that. Again, I keep saying it, you’re a coach and you say, ‘Oh, we need some toughness added to our team’ and you go look at the — he’s right there in this really small group of guys that instantly can bring your team toughness so sad to see him go. I got a lot of time for him. I coached him in Toronto. I really liked him. I wish him well.”

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Former Sixer PJ Tucker goes scoreless off the bench in Clippers debut

Former Philadelphia 76ers forward PJ Tucker went scoreless off the bench in his Los Angeles Clippers debut.

While James Harden was the main component in the big trade between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Clippers, there were other pieces in that deal.

One of those was veteran PJ Tucker. The Sixers signed Tucker to a three-year deal early in the 2022 offseason, and he gave Philadelphia a boost in the intangibles on the floor.

Tucker made his debut in the Battle of LA on Wednesday night when he came off the bench for the Clippers. He went scoreless with five rebounds and four personal fouls in 21 minutes of a 130-125 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

He needs to get up to speed on what the Clippers want to do out on the floor. Tucker’s game has never been about scoring, so his first game with them isn’t much of a surprise. He still made an impact for LA with his physical play and the energy he brought to the floor. He came up with some key rebounds and defensive stops down the stretch in regulation and overtime.

As for Harden, he is expected to make his debut for his new team on Monday when the Clippers take on the New York Knicks on the road.

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Sixers’ PJ Tucker gives thoughts on new NBA in-season tournament

Philadelphia 76ers veteran PJ Tucker gives his thoughts on the new NBA in-season tournament.

MILWAUKEE — The NBA will institute a new wrinkle into the regular-season schedule for the 2023-24 season: an in-season tournament.

For the first time, the league will conduct a tournament in which teams will play for the NBA Cup and cash. Every team in the league is placed into one of six groups. The winners of those groups will participate in a single-elimination stage before the survivors head to Las Vegas for the semifinals and final.

The Philadelphia 76ers are in Group A in the East with the Atlanta Hawks, the Indiana Pacers, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Detroit Pistons. Philadelphia’s first in-season tournament game will be on Nov. 9 against the Pistons in Detroit.

This is a new look for the league, and some might not get it or want to be involved in it, but veteran PJ Tucker is ready.

“I don’t mind it,” he said. “If it works for the league, it works for me. It’s a part of the business. I think it’s a part of the game growing and them just bringing more. I’m excited about it. I think the tournament in Vegas will be pretty cool. I think guys will get into it as it gets further along. I think guys will get more into it.”

It will be interesting to see how Tucker and other players in the league will approach the in-season tournament. Will it be like a playoff game? Will players have the same playoff mindset for games in November if they’re playing for something?

“You wanna win,” Tucker added. “Obviously, you wanna play, you wanna win. I feel like the league is full of a ton of competitive guys. Everybody wants to win. If you have a tournament, you’re gonna wanna win it.”

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Nick Nurse singles out PJ Tucker for what he does to help Sixers

Nick Nurse gave a lot of credit to PJ Tucker for what he does to help the Philadelphia 76ers succeed.

CAMDEN, N.J. — PJ Tucker does many of the little things for the Philadelphia 76ers. He does the stuff that doesn’t show up in the box score to help the Sixers win basketball games.

He boxes out multiple players to make sure Philadelphia gets rebounds. He will set the tone with a physical style of play. He will get into his teammates’ ears to ensure they get the message that they need to be better.

Coach Nick Nurse has experience coaching Tucker while with the Toronto Raptors, so he is familiar with what he brings to the table.

“He’s a unique player in this league,” Nurse beamed at practice on Monday. “When you say ‘Oh, what does our team need? Oh, I need some toughness.’ Well, then you’re gonna go to the list and it’s a pretty short, unique list of guys that just automatically bring intensity, toughness and experience to your team.”

He gave Tucker a lot of credit for helping the Sixers turn things around to win the preseason finale on Friday against the Atlanta Hawks.

“He’s gonna fight,” Nurse added. “In the game the other night, I don’t know if you look at his box score and what he had if he had anything at all, but I’m telling you, the second half, we played a lot tougher and a lot more intense because of the way he played in the first couple of possessions.”

When Tucker is active and he is flying all over the place on the defensive end of the floor, that sets the tone to demand more from his teammates in that situation.

“He just totally set the tone physicality-wise and that just went all the way down the whole path,” Nurse finished. “Everybody came flying around and seeing him in there and all that stuff so it’s a strange little thing that you love as a coach.”

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PJ Tucker late scratch for Sixers vs. Nets due to right ankle soreness

PJ Tucker is a late scratch for the Philadelphia 76ers against the Brooklyn Nets due to right ankle soreness.

As the Philadelphia 76ers prepared to take the court on Monday against the Brooklyn Nets in the preseason, they were already without Joel Embiid, James Harden, Danuel House Jr. and Furkan Korkmaz. They found out before the tip they would be down another player.

Originally in the starting lineup, PJ Tucker was a late scratch due to right ankle soreness. Considering these games don’t count, it makes sense for the Sixers to sit Tucker if he is not feeling well.

By replacing Tucker in the lineup, the Sixers will get a better look at Kelly Oubre Jr. alongside Tyrese Maxey, De’Anthony Melton, Paul Reed and Tobias Harris.

The preseason is an opportunity for coach Nick Nurse to see what he has in other players. While it is disappointing to not have his main guys out there, the other guys get to audition for playing time.

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Player grades: Kelly Oubre Jr. performs, Sixers fall to Celtics in preseason

Kelly Oubre Jr. performs well off the bench as the Philadelphia 76ers fall to the Boston Celtics in preseason action.

PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers continued the preseason schedule on Wednesday at home in a rematch with the Boston Celtics. The Sixers fell to the Cs in the preseason opener in Boston and were looking for more productivity in this matchup at home.

Once again playing without James Harden, Joel Embiid and Furkan Korkmaz, coach Nick Nurse wanted to see what he has in the rest of the roster. Kelly Oubre Jr., a new addition, hopped off the bench and poured in 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting with four 3s to help. Despite his efforts, the Sixers took a 112-101 loss.

Tyrese Maxey had 17 points, De’Anthony Melton had 10 points, Tobias Harris added nine and six rebounds, and Paul Reed added 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. Danny Green added eight points while Jaden Springer had 10.

Here are the player grades following the loss:

Player grades: Tyrese Maxey plays well, Sixers fall to Celtics in preseason

Tyrese Maxey plays well, but the Philadelphia 76ers fall to the Boston Celtics in the preseason opener.

The Philadelphia 76ers began the preseason schedule on Sunday with a visit to where their 2022-23 season ended: the TD Garden. The Sixers took on the Boston Celtics with a lot less on the line as both teams look to prepare for the upcoming season.

The Sixers played without Joel Embiid, James Harden, De’Anthony Melton, and Furkan Korkmaz as coach Nick Nurse wanted to see what he has in other pieces. He knows what he has in Tyrese Maxey as the young guard went to work early and often in this one to the tune of 24 points. The Sixers did drop this one to the Celtics 114-106.

Tobias Harris added 13 points and seven rebounds, Patrick Beverley had 12 points, Jaden Springer added 14 points and five rebounds, and Kelly Oubre Jr. had six and four rebounds.

Here are the player grades following the preseason loss:

Sixers’ PJ Tucker describes what camp was like with new coach Nick Nurse

Philadelphia 76ers veteran PJ Tucker describes what a Nick Nurse training camp was like in Colorado.

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The Philadelphia 76ers wrapped up their first training camp under the guidance of new coach Nick Nurse on Friday and turned their attention to the Boston Celtics on Sunday in the preseason opener.

Nurse is an innovative thinker who will try any lineup or scheme he can think of if it means helping his team win a basketball game. He has shown during his time with the Toronto Raptors that he will do whatever it takes to win basketball games.

Veteran PJ Tucker, who has some history with Nurse during his days with the Raptors, gave the new head man in Philadelphia some credit when it comes to his defensive schemes in camp.

“He’ll just throw anything out there,” Tucker laughed. “Triangle-and-two or box-and-one or 1-3-1 and stuff like college stuff. He was trying anything. So you just keep an open mind and give this stuff a try. If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t, but just giving stuff tries throughout games and throughout practices. Mix it up.”

As far as the offensive system is concerned, Nurse relies a bit more on ball movement and having it move from side-to-side on that end of the floor. That is a bit different than what Doc Rivers ran in previous seasons when he focused on the pick-and-roll offense.

“A little more movement,” Tucker said of Nurse’s system compared to Rivers’. “A lot of different terminology that guys are getting used to, but like I said, it’s just a lot more energy, I would say. Ball moves around, bodies move, get up and down quick, but I think it fits our personnel pretty well.”

Overall, it appears that it was a good camp for everybody involved, and Tucker and the Sixers were able to get some of Nurse’s terminology down for the future.

“It was cool,” Tucker finished. “Good energy. Another training camp. Camp’s always interesting. Young guys bring energy. Older guys kind of get back started, get going, get around each other. We had a good time. It was good.”

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Joel Embiid, Sixers react to big additions made by Bucks, Celtics

Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers react to the big moves made by the Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Eastern Conference continues to get tougher for the Philadelphia 76ers. The Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics were already tough opponents sporting stars at many positions.

Now, both teams have loaded up.

While the Bucks made a huge megadeal to team Damian Lillard with Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the Celtics went out and brought in All-Star Jrue Holiday to team with Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, the Sixers were unable to make a big splash.

They were hampered by the James Harden trade request and they were unable to add a star at the moment. With the team convening for media day on Monday, Joel Embiid gave his thoughts on the Bucks and the Celtics surpassing the Sixers.

“Who said they surpassed us?” asked Embiid. “We still gotta go out and compete. You can do whatever you want off the court, but you still gotta go out there and put the ball in the hole. I believe that any team that I’m on, we always gonna have a chance. We just need to be a little bit lucky. We just need to stay healthy, be healthy, and stay healthy, and as a team just come together.”

For all intents and purposes, both the Bucks and the Celtics were probably already ahead of the Sixers before each made their big moves. Milwaukee still had the main pieces from its title team in 2021 while Boston ousted Philadelphia in 2023 and made the finals in 2022.

Now, Milwaukee has added Lillard to Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton while Boston has Holiday with their two stars.

“We’ve never had consistency,” Embiid added. “Every summer has been changes here and there. So I feel like at some point, if you want to win, you need to have that consistency, and at the end that’s the next step for us. You see all the other teams. Denver just won a championship. They’ve been together for so many years. Golden State. They’ve been doing it for a long time. So you need to be consistent.”

Consistency is always a good thing. Nobody should argue that. The Sixers essentially have the same roster that won 54 games and was one win away from the Eastern Conference finals in 2023. Obviously, that was with Harden, but there are some good pieces for the Sixers going forward.

“Adding Dame to the East for sure, Celtics moving some things around getting Jrue is big, but they lost a lot, too,” added PJ Tucker. “So it’s different ways to look at it. At the end of the day, it’s gonna be so much talk right now to begin the season. You know how it goes.”

Obviously, nobody knows what will happen. That’s why they play the games. However, when considering the magnitude of the moves the Bucks and the Celtics have made combined with Philadelphia’s playoff shortcomings in the past, it’s easy to think that both Milwaukee and Boston are in front of Philadelphia at the moment.

“It’s always movement and the hype of certain teams, surprise teams, it’s going to be a roller coaster ride for the first few months,” Tucker added. “So you just kind of get on board, work hard to build with the team, and figure it out, but I think everybody in the East, in that top, eight-to-10 think they got a shot at coming out of the East.”

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Tyrese Maxey, other Sixers give thoughts on current James Harden saga

Tyrese Maxey and other members of the Philadelphia 76ers give their thoughts on the current James Harden saga.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The conversation around the Philadelphia 76ers focuses on one player: James Harden. The future Hall of Famer did not attend media day on Monday as he continues his push to be traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Sixers are not going to trade Harden just to trade him; he is still a very talented player. Philadelphia is going to do everything in its power to either will him back to the team or wait until the right deal comes along.

This is not the first time the Sixers have dealt with this situation. The Ben Simmons saga was just two years ago, so they have experience in this situation. As they prepare for the 2023-24 season, Tyrese Maxey and other members of the team gave their thoughts on the situation.