National Basketball Association

T.J. McConnell's Regression

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

In a way too early analysis in the season. It is clear after only four games that T.J. McConnell has regressed on the offensive side of the ball.

For the team and the fans the begin of this season have been nothing but disappointment. First overall pick Ben Simmons and highly toted free agent signing Jerryd Bayless are both out for prolonged periods of times. The Philadelphia 76ers are 0-4 with two of the defeats being close ones at home. There are countless reasons why fans are disappointed with very few bright spots.

One of those bright spots being Joel Embiid. The lauding of Embiid is more than justifiable, most recently from former great NBA center, Patrick Ewing. As with Embiid, other players on the Sixers roster should be analyzed. There has been one player that has not been getting a lot of attention, T.J. McConnell.

Yes it is way too early in the season to make any definitive statement about any one player. However, it is clear that McConnell has not been able to produce at the same level and effectiveness that he did last season. The reasons why this is happening is yet to be determined.

Per Game Table
Season	G	GS	MP	FG	FGA	FG%	3P	3PA	3P%	eFG%	FT%	TRB	AST	STL	BLK	TOV	PF	PTS
2015-16	81	17	19.8	2.7	5.7	.470	0.4	1.1	.348	.503	.634	3.1	4.5	1.2	0.1	1.7	1.4	6.1
2016-17	4	0	18.3	1.3	3.8	.333	0.0	1.3	.000	.333	.667	1.8	5.5	1.5	0.0	1.5	2.5	3.0
Career	85	17	19.8	2.6	5.6	.466	0.4	1.1	.330	.498	.636	3.0	4.6	1.2	0.1	1.7	1.5	5.9

Shooting from the field in both 2-point and 3-point land is drastically down this year for McConnell. His scoring output has been cut in half because of this. There is no reason why his shooting should be down. Regardless it will impact how often he sees the floor once Bayless returns from injury.

Now there are some positives that can been seen in McConnell’s offensive game. His free throw shooting has improved some and he has averaged one more assist than he did from last season. He also has less turnovers per game as well. Still these improvements are not enough to make up for his scoring inefficiency.

What does this all mean for the second year undrafted point guard? It is still too early in to make any definitive statement based on the small amount of play that has been seen. However, if T.J. McConnell continues to produce these stats, don’t be surprised that he rides the bench once Bayless returns. The teams struggles enough scoring and doesn’t need a player that can’t score on the floor.