Former Arizona Wildcats guard T.J. McConnell was honored Monday with the Professional Basketball Writers Association’s Charles Barkley Award, given to one player from each team for their cooperation with the media.
McConnell, who is completing his second year in the NBA with Philadelphia, is well-respected by the media that covers the 76ers.
He was a media and fan favorite when he played for Arizona from 2012-15.
McConnell’s play warrants the media attention. Some of his averages this season were higher than what he achieved in his rookie season of 2015-16:
Minutes per game: 19.8 last season/26.3 this season.
Assists per game: 4.5 last season/6.6 this season.
Points per game: 6.1 last season/6.8 this season.
And he made history as well:
.@TJMcConnell is the 1st #Sixers player with 500 assists & 125 steals in a season since @alleniverson in the 2005-06 season. #BearDown #NBA pic.twitter.com/sbacixeZBK
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) April 7, 2017
His notable charity work in Philadelphia adds to his charm in the City of Brotherly Love:
.@TJMcConnell and Firstrust Bank have teamed up to raise $8,039.36 for the Sixers Youth Foundation through Dimes for Dollars this season! pic.twitter.com/phJtqrvCub
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) April 10, 2017
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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