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The Philadelphia 76ers have had a stunning offseason as they fulfilled their biggest priority of re-signing James Harden. Along with that, the franchise has also been busy in the free agency market. Aided by Harden's voluntary pay-cut, they have signed PJ Tucker, Danuel House and De'Anthony Melton.
Among these three players, PJ Tucker is going to be pivotal for them as he brings a lot of experience to the team. The 37-year-old signed a three-year $33 million extension with the franchise and will be focused on helping them win the NBA title.
Many have had their doubts about Tucker being worthy of the contract, considering his age. However, the Philadelphia 76ers know what the veteran brings to the table. Speaking about Tucker's inclusion on the 76ers team, Tim Bontemps said:
"The Bucks bet PJ couldn't do what he did with them when he left, then he was great with the Heat last year, might have had his best season.
"Then obviously, you know the Heat wanted to keep him, but Philly is betting he could continue doing that at 38, 39 and 40 at some degree, that's a heavy bet, but as I mentioned earlier, he is literally exactly what they needed on a lot of fronts."
PJ Tucker has been a key piece of several championship contending teams. He brings a certain level of toughness and grit, which is what helps a franchise succeed.
The Philadelphia 76ers have had a great roster for many years, but they always lacked a player with Tucker's toughness.
Joel Embiid, who faced PJ Tucker in the second round of the playoffs, very well knows how tough he is to play against. He also mentioned that Tucker is the type of player that he has never had on his team. Further elaborating on Tucker's importance, Bontemps added:
"We've talked about many times on the pod, it wasn't a mistake that after Game 6, the Big fella went on to two minutes, to look he's never had a player like PJ Tucker on his team, well now he has PJ on his team."
How valuable is PJ Tucker to the Philadelphia 76ers?
The Philadelphia 76ers are going into the 2022-23 season with championship aspirations. They are well set to achieve that as their roster is stacked across all departments.
James Harden and Joel Embiid are always going to be key pieces to the team. Their ability to score and make their teammates better is what the Philadelphia 76ers will be counting on next season.
With PJ Tucker's arrival, they now have a player that anchors the team on the defensive side of things. The Philadelphia 76ers have a few good defenders in Embiid, Tobias Harris and Mattisse Thybulle.
However, Tucker will be the player that will lead them on the defensive end of the floor.
He has championship experience and can guard all positions. With him in the side, Harden and Embiid can wreck havoc on the opposition without having to worry about the defensive end.
Being a veteran, Tucker also doesn't shy away from holding his teammates accountable. This will certainly help the Philadelphia 76ers thrive, and perform a lot better next season.
