PHILADELPHIA — The Indiana Pacers have connections to the Philadelphia 76ers through TJ McConnell and Trevelin Queen. Most Sixers fans will know McConnell from his four seasons in Philadelphia, but Queen is shrouded in mystery.
Queen was brought in by Philadelphia early in free agency but he did not get much of a chance to show what he can do. He suffered a concussion in the preseason opener promptly after scoring four quick points. By the time he was clear of the concussion protocol, the Sixers waived him and he then signed with the Pacers.
While he is on a two-way deal, he has yet to play for Indiana, but as he made his return to Philadelphia on Monday, Queen was thankful for his time with the Sixers and his relationship with Joel Embiid.
“I guess everybody had a certain relationship with me, but I felt like Joel Embiid,” said Queen. “I was pretty cool with him. I was pretty close with him. He liked me as a player. He liked me as a person, so he was pretty cool. James (Harden), I met James in Houston, so I already had a familiar type encounter with him.”
One wonders what could have been if the Sixers had kept Queen. He was the 2022 G League MVP and showed off a lot of his scoring and versatile play out on the floor.
Even though the Sixers had a slew of veterans ahead of him, the young man out of New Mexico State feels as if he could have made an impact with the team.
“I feel like I can do something anywhere I’m at, honestly,” he added. “Philly wasn’t the position so Indiana is the home for me. Everything happens for a reason at the end of the day. I feel like I could’ve been a contributor to Philly. I feel like I had a good training camp. I thought there was support in me as a player. It’s a tough business so I just stay ready for any situation.”
Even though his time in Philadelphia was brief, it was a beneficial time for Queen being able to learn from the likes of Embiid and Harden on the roster.
“It was a blessing being around a bunch of Hall of Famers,” he stated. “A great organization with good people. I feel like I learned a lot there just about myself and basketball, in general, just being around James Harden, Joel Embiid, and all these veteran players that just have so much already invested into the game so I take it as a learning process for me.”
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