PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Earlier this month, NBC and the Golf Channel noted how they believed Oakmont Country Club represented the city of Pittsburgh. A tough challenge filled with hazards that only the those who battled every shot would conquer.
We watched the embodiment of that spirit, toughness, heart, smarts during the NBA Playoffs in Chartiers Valley HS graduate TJ McConnell. At 6’1”, 190 pounds he was a catalyst to get the Indiana Pacers to the brink of a first-ever NBA title.
In games five and seven, he took over the third quarter to keep the Pacers in the game. National analysts were wondering if Indiana would have won game five if they would have played McConnell more in the fourth quarter. Crazy in the standpoint that the undrafted free agent 33-year-old was that valuable in the biggest games of the season.
He wasn’t perfect Sunday, but gave everything he had to try to win an NBA championship. You could see in his reaction after the game-the hugs and tears with family, teammates, Hall of Famer Reggie Miller. They all recognized what he left on the court to give his team a chance to win.
When McConnell enters the game, you hear a buzz in Indianapolis. Their fans saw what Duquesne head coach Ron Everhart saw in 2009. It wasn’t just giving a local kid a shot, they saw something more. As did the conference, becoming the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. He transferred to Arizona and rose to the occasion, in both seasons in the PAC 12, he was a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award as the best point guard in college basketball. His name is in the Wildcats Ring of Honor with greats like Steve Kerr and Damon Stoudamire, even though he only played two seasons.
The Philadelphia 76ers gave him a tryout and he would play in all 81 games his rookie season, starting 17. He would start 51 the next season. With Indiana he twice received votes for NBA Sixth Man of the Year, if there was an award for it this postseason, he easily could have won it.
TJ wasn’t given a chance, but that didn’t stop him.
I found myself, probably like many of us, yelling out to anyone around me, wait, TJ’s in the game. I was hanging on what he will do next.
You are proud to tell anyone you know, TJ McConnell is from Pittsburgh.