Lesson from TJ McConnell: Never give up the dream

… playing in NBA despite doubts 

Few doubted that T.J. McConnell, who played for Chartiers Valley High School in the Pittsburgh area, was a great scorer. He tallied 2,406 points in his high school career, averaging 34.2 points per game in his senior season.

McConnell played for his father, Tim, in high school, and it was a very competitive basketball family. His aunt, Susie, was an all-American at Penn State who starred on the U.S. Olympic team that won the gold medal in 1988 and the bronze in 1992. She is now the head coach of the women's team at Pitt.

His Aunt Kathy and Uncle Tom have also been Div. I head coaches, so it was in his blood.

Doubts

However, there have always been doubts about just how good he was. For instance, he did not have any top offers to colleges, so he settled on Duquesne. After a few okay seasons there, and though he was only a third-team all-Atlantic 10 player, McConnell thought that he could do better.

He talked to former Pitt standout Sean Miller, also a former great WPIAL player, who was coaching at Arizona. Miller agreed to allow him to play for the Wildcats after sitting out a year.

Many, and I was one of them, did not think that he could cut it at the Pac-12 level. He had been okay in the A-10, but this was a different world.

After a year sitting out because of NCAA transfer rules, McConnell finally became eligible at Arizona. He not only became a contributor, he was the starting point guard his senior year and led the team to the Elite 8, where it fell to Wisconsin in a devastating loss.

Never make the NBA

But, just as everyone said when he came out of high school that he could not play at an elite level, when he finished at Arizona, the message was the same: He would never play in the NBA.

McConnell himself felt that way. "There was some doubts in my mind," McConnell said on a Philadelphia podcast about the challenge. "But when [my agent] brought up statistics and stuff of guys how I play, I didn't know some of this stuff and it got me more confident."

Nevertheless, he was still not drafted, but he did talk to the 76ers. According to a Philadelphia TV station, "General manager Sam Hinkie and current head coach Brett Brown gave McConnell a call that started his journey to becoming the team's starting point guard."

"I said from that moment I hung up the phone, 'I'm going to fight for my life because nothing is given to me,' " McConnell said on the podcast. "I wanted to just stick out and show them that I belonged in this league no matter what."

Some of the other NBA teams wanted to send him to Europe, but not the Sixers. Now, he is 11-5 as the starting point guard despite the team signing two veteran point guards in the offseason. They were hurt, so TJ took advantage of his opportunity.

Sixers Coach Brown likes him. “He’s a Pennsylvania kid that nobody gave a chance. I’m on my 17th point guard [since he has been coach]. You go through that massive volume of point guards and then have somebody who just doesn’t go away. There’s an injury, so you give him the ball and that’s life. He seized the moment, grabbed the opportunity and he ran hard with it. To see him be rewarded, it’s a great story,” according to the Post-Gazette.

Rookie season depressing for team

Last year, the Sixers were just 10-72, a horrible season. Now they are 21-35, some improvement since they are within reach of a playoff berth. Since Jan. 1, they are 13-11, the PG noted.

McConnell, now 24, has been averaging 9.0 points, 8.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.8 steals a game since he has been a starter.

Conclusion

So, the message is clear. Never forget your dreams. TJ McConnell was told that he was not quick enough, big enough, athletic enough -- to play in the NBA. And now he is there.

He may actually lead his team into the NBA playoffs this year, which would be an unbelievable accomplishment in itself.