The Philadelphia 76ers came into the 2015-16 season with the expectations of being one of the worst teams in the NBA. To make matters worse, their top two point guards were expected to miss at least the first month of the season, so things weren't great before the season even started. The 76ers have started the season 0-4, but they were extremely competitive in their last game, and that coincides with T.J. McConnell getting his first start. McConnell has been a pleasant surprise for the Sixers so far, and he reportedly has a chance of keeping the starting job even when the other point guards get healthy, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
McConnell was an undrafted free agent whom the Sixers brought into training camp, but he was not considered to have much of a chance to make the team. McConnell, though, impressed the 76ers during the preseason, and that, coupled with the fact that Kendall Marshall and Tony Wroten were still recovering from major injuries, gave McConnell an opening for a roster spot.
The former Arizona Wildcat came into the season as the backup point guard behind Isaiah Canaan, but Canaan has since been moved over to shooting guard which has made room for McConnell to start. So far this season McConnell has been extremely impressive, as he is fifth in the league with eight assists per game, and he is one of only five players to have 12 or more assists with one or fewer turnovers in consecutive games this season.
Head coach Brett Brown was asked if McConnell is making a case to keep the job even when Wroten and Marshall come back, to which he replied, "The most honest answer I can give is we'll deal with that time when it comes."
It has only been four games so far, but McConnell has shown that even though he doesn't score all that much he is efficient and he takes care of the ball extremely well. McConnell has shown he does a little bit of everything on the floor, as he is averaging 4.8 rebounds per game, and his competition is definitely not without its flaws. Besides the fact that both Wroten and Marshall will be coming back from major injuries, Wroten is an extremely inefficient scorer and not a great passer. Marshall is a very good passer, but there is a reason he is playing for his fourth team in the past four years. It's a very small sample size for McConnell, but what he's doing now looks sustainable, so keeping the starting job seems like a very real possibility.
