T.J. McConnell finds himself starting at point guard in Tyrese Haliburton's stead, but he's not trying to mimic the likely All-Star.
INDIANAPOLIS -- T.J. McConnell has made a career out of stretching his limits to their breaking point.
McConnell's a sharp passer, but not quite as slick as Haliburton, so he's not trying to match the 22-year-old's package of no-look dishes. He doesn't have Haliburton's 6-5 length or his fluid moves, so even through he drives hard to the rim, he doesn't try to finish over long-armed rim protectors. And he's not quite the shooter Haliburton is, so he takes his 3s when defenders go under screens or leave him alone, but not on step-backs and fade-aways.
On the season, he's averaging a modest 6.9 points, 4.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game, but in the last six games with Haliburton out, McConnell's third on the team with 15.2 points per game, first in assists and second only to 6-11 center Myles Turner in rebounds , playing 27.3 minutes per game in a season when he's averaging 18.6. He's shooting 63.9% and 6 of 7 from 3-point range, remarkable because he rarely shoots 3s and was 6 of 21 on the year before Haliburton went down.
"He's a terrific player," Carlisle said."He's a player that any team in this league would want on their team and I think any guy playing in this league would want to play with him. He's totally selfless, brings unlimited energy and enthusiasm and he just has such a will and a heart to compete. ... It's important when you're going through a tough time to make sure you have your best competitors on the floor as much as possible.
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