Tag: PJ Tucker

A key question for every Philadelphia 76ers player on the roster

Here is a key question for every player on the roster as the Philadelphia 76ers prepare for the upcoming season.

The Philadelphia 76ers are ready to convene for training camp on Tuesday when they head to Colorado State University to begin preparation for the upcoming season. The Sixers are expected to remain contenders in the East despite the ongoing James Harden saga.

As the new season approaches, now is the time to begin previewing the 2023-24 season and begin getting ready for the adventure that is Sixers basketball.

With camp approaching, it is time to begin talking basketball. Here is a key question for the players on the roster with guaranteed deals:

Sixers 3 goals: PJ Tucker has to continue to guide, do the little things

Philadelphia 76ers veteran PJ Tucker needs to continue to lead and do the little things out on the floor.

In this continuing series, Sixers Wire looks at the 18 players, per Sportrac, that comprise the Philadelphia 76ers roster — 15 under contract and the three players on two-way deals — and gives each three goals for the 2023-24 season.

The new season begins on Oct. 26, and training camp begins on Oct. 3. Now is the time to begin previewing the new season of adventure that is Sixers basketball.

Up next is PJ Tucker who is in the second year of a 3-year deal he signed in the 2022 offseason. Tucker had a solid first season in Philadelphia. The numbers of 3.5 points and 3.9 rebounds don’t jump out at anybody, but it was his influence off the floor that made the biggest impact.

For Tucker, his three goals are as follows:

Updated 2023-24 Sixers depth chart after the signing of Kelly Oubre Jr.

Here is an updated look at the depth chart for the Philadelphia 76ers after the signing of Kelly Oubre Jr.

As the Philadelphia 76ers continue to work through the 2023 offseason and the trade request of James Harden, they have made moves to add to their bench depth.

The Sixers brought in veteran guard Patrick Beverley and Mo Bamba, who gives them some size. They brought back Montrezl Harrell on a one-year deal after he declined his player option, which gives the Sixers some cap flexibility for the future.

They also matched the 3-year $23 million offer sheet Paul Reed signed with the Utah Jazz to keep the energetic big man in Philadelphia. Most recently, the Sixers brought back Danny Green on a one-year deal to provide some more depth. They also recently brought in Kelly Oubre Jr. after a productive season in Charlotte.

Here is an updated look at Philadelphia’s depth chart for the 2023-24 season:

2022-23 final Philadelphia 76ers player grades: PJ Tucker

Here are the final thoughts and a grade for PJ Tucker after his first season with the Philadelphia 76ers.

The 2022-23 season ended for the Philadelphia 76ers with a Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics in the second round of the playoffs, so it’s time to reflect on the season.

The Sixers finished 54-28 and were third in the Eastern Conference behind the Milwaukee Bucks and the Celtics. Considering the slow 12-12 start, the season was a success for the Sixers despite the sour and familiar ending.

Now it’s time to go back and grade each player on the roster for what he did throughout the season. In this installment, Sixers Wire looks at veteran forward PJ Tucker in his first season in the City of Brotherly Love.

Should the Boston Celtics aim to trade for Philadelphia 76ers forward PJ Tucker?

Per the staff of Bleacher Report, it should be a priority, if an unlikely one.

Should the Boston Celtics aim to trade for 38-year-old Philadelphia 76ers forward PJ Tucker? Per the staff of Bleacher Report, it should be a priority, if an unlikely one.

“PJ Tucker just turned 38 and is extremely shot-volume shy. He’s also exactly what the Celtics need,” writes Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale.

“Tucker lets the Celtics downsize to one big without significantly harming their defensive presence near the basket and on the glass,” they add, noting that while he can’t match Robert Williams III’s rim pressure, “opposing teams have to respect his corner 3 when he’s actually firing away.”

The staff correctly assesses this deal as an unlikely one given the two clubs are rivals in the same conference who have designs on title contention.

But it would indeed be a target worth pursuing given Tucker is “great insurance against a suddenly harsher Al Horford aging curve, RW3’s injury history, and Grant Williams’ potential departure in restricted free agency.”

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Sixers assess season after disheartening Game 7 road loss to Celtics

The Philadelphia 76ers assess their season after a disheartening Game 7 road loss to the Boston Celtics.

BOSTON — In the grand scheme, the Philadelphia 76ers had a nice 2022-23 season. The first full year of the Joel Embiid and James Harden pairing produced some encouraging results. The two dominated on the floor, and the team won 54 games after a 12-12 start to the season.

The Sixers swept the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the playoffs — their first sweep of a seven-game series since 1985. They held a 3-2 lead over the Boston Celtics in the semifinals after winning twice in Boston.

However, the Sixers let that lead slip away. They had a chance to close the series at home, but they fell in Game 6 after the offense stalled late. They didn’t have a shot in Game 7: They fell 112-88, producing a very familiar result for this franchise.

“We played great all year,” coach Doc Rivers said. “This loss absolutely diminishes that, what we did this year in some ways. It doesn’t for us. I think this team is headed right. I thought we took another mental step this season and then tonight (Sunday), I thought we took that step backward, but that’s OK. That happens, too.”

It was a really disheartening effort from the Sixers on the road. They had been a resilient group all season, but didn’t show that resilience on Sunday. It’s a bitter ending after they had won Game 5 on the road to bring the 3-2 series lead back to Philadelphia.

PJ Tucker agreed with Rivers’ assessment that the loss diminished the season.

“Yeah. I agree 1,000%,” said Tucker. “All the sacrifices and all the things that everybody did around the team. For everything to come out the way it did to go down like that without feeling like you gave a full fight, two disappointing games to win the series.”

When asked his thoughts on Rivers’ assessment and the season as a whole, Embiid took a more philosophical approach.

“You could say that,” Embiid started. “Losing by how ever many points we did lose by. That’s not us. It doesn’t represent us, but I thought, obviously, they played well, and we just found the wrong night to be cold. All of us. We just missed a lot of shots. Wide-open ones all game long so, yeah, I think a lot of guys on this team fought the whole year and I appreciate them for that. We all fought and I thought for the most part, we played hard and we all cared about winning.”

The Celtics were a dominant team all season. There is a reason they were considered the favorite in the East all season. Embiid acknowledged that after the season-ending loss.

“That’s the best team in the league,” he finished. “They’re so talented and they got a lot of guys that can play great basketball. Like I said, losing to them, seven games, I thought for the most part, we played hard, and we just came up short.”

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PJ Tucker says Sixers weren’t tough enough to beat Celtics in Game 7

PJ Tucker says the Philadelphia 76ers were not tough enough in the Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics.

BOSTON–The Philadelphia 76ers had an opportunity staring them right in the face on Sunday. They had a Game 7 on the road against the Boston Celtics and the chance to finally get over the hump in Round 2.

Instead, the Celtics hit them in the mouth in the third quarter and they couldn’t respond. Boston outscored the Sixers 33-10 in the third quarter and that pretty much won them the game as Jayson Tatum took over. The Celtics earned a 112-88 win to eliminate the Sixers on Sunday.

PJ Tucker, who was brought to the Sixers in order to instill that toughness and be able to help them get over the hump, wasn’t happy with what he saw from his teammates.

“It wasn’t enough,” said a somber Tucker after the loss. “It just wasn’t enough. We weren’t very tough. We weren’t very physically tough, emotionally tough. It just wasn’t enough.”

Tucker gave the Sixers a spark with 11 points in the first half, but Joel Embiid and James Harden weren’t able to get into any type of offensive rhythm. The Celtics then hit them with an avalanche and Philadelphia really wasn’t able to find that response.

“It was just a lack of mental toughness from us,” added Tobias Harris. “Going back and forth when we got down six, eight, it was hard to generate that type of pop, that flow to get us back and understand that the game wasn’t too out of reach. Then they just started rattling up the 3s, and transition, the points, the turnovers for us that happened hurt us as well. We gave them too many easy ones.”

The Sixers had a helluva season, but it didn’t matter. They fell in the semifinals for the third consecutive season and for the fifth time in the last six seasons.

Tucker summed up the season in one word: “Average.”

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Player grades: Joel Embiid, Sixers come up short in Game 7 vs. Celtics

Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers fall to the Boston Celtics on the road in Game 7 as their season comes to an end.

BOSTON–The Philadelphia 76ers had their opportunity staring right in front of them. The task was simple: Win and advance to their first Eastern Conference finals in 22 years.

With that being said, the Boston Celtics are not an easy team to bury. The Cs proved that on Thursday when they went into Philadelphia and staved off elimination that night to force this Game 7.

The Celtics took a double-digit lead in the third quarter as Jayson Tatum took over for Boston and the Sixers were not able to fight back. Joel Embiid and James Harden had a tough time finding their offensive rhythm and the Celtics walked away with the 112-88 win to end Philadelphia’s season. Tatum scored a Game 7 record 51 points for Boston.

Embiid had 15 points on 5-for-18 shooting and two blocks, Harden had nine points on 3-for-11 shooting, six rebounds, and seven assists, Tobias Harris had 17 points, PJ Tucker had 11, and Tyrese Maxey had 17.

Here are the player grades following the season-ending loss:

Player grades: Celtics defeat Sixers in Game 6 to keep season alive

The Boston Celtics walk away with a Game 6 win over the Philadelphia 76ers to keep their season alive and force a Game 7.

PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers were looking to finish the Boston Celtics and advance to their first Eastern Conference finals since 2001. They knew their challenge would tough: These Celtics are not so easy to bury.

Amid a raucous atmosphere at the Wells Fargo Center, the Celtics put on a shooting clinic in the opening minutes. They couldn’t miss a 3 while the Sixers were running in quicksand.

Philadelphia worked its way back and led in the fourth quarter, but the Celtics walked away with a 95-86 victory to keep their season alive and force a Game 7.

Joel Embiid had 26 points and 10 rebounds for Philadelphia. Tyrese Maxey had 26 points. James Harden added 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. PJ Tucker added eight points and Tobias Harris had two on 1-for-7 shooting.

Here are the player grades following the loss:

PJ Tucker loves that Sixers are communicating more on the floor

PJ Tucker loves to see the Philadelphia 76ers communicating more with each other out on the floor.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The little things. That is what PJ Tucker brings to the Philadelphia 76ers. The little things are why they are on the doorstep of reaching their first Eastern Conference finals since the Allen Iverson days in 2001.

Tucker has been lighting a fire underneath his teammates when the time calls for it. He has made sure his teammates are focused on the task at hand, and he has been pushing the Sixers to communicate more.

When the Sixers convened for training camp in Charleston, South Carolina, in September, Tucker wanted to instill that communication mindset in his teammates. He wanted everybody to talk, and he has seen everybody take a step forward from Joel Embiid to Tyrese Maxey to Tobias Harris.

“A long way,” Tucker laughed about the improved communication. “I’m getting on Tyrese’s nerves. I’m driving him crazy. Jo and James and even Tobias. Tobias talks a lot more now. He’s adapted a lot and playing with me and James (Harden) and the group completely has kind of change from those days. It’s funny when I think about those days because it’s so different.”

Tucker has also seen Embiid take steps forward in his leadership style. While the MVP still doesn’t talk as much as Tucker would like, he sets a good example for this group by leading out on the floor.

“He still doesn’t talk much, but it’s more of his action,” Tucker said of Embiid. “A lot of times he just comes out of nowhere, especially on defense and on offense, just being aggressive and aggressive. When he does that, it makes it easier for everybody else to do those types of things.”

Tucker and the Sixers look to finish the Boston Celtics on Thursday night.

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