T.J. McConnell provided the necessary spark from the bench as the Pacers forced a Game 7 in their NBA Finals series against the Thunder. The Pacers’ veteran played only 24 minutes in the game and stuffed the stat sheet. He finished the game with 12 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 steals.
Following the game, the crew of NBA TV, including NBA legend Isiah Thomas, interviewed McConnell. They were poking him about yelling at his father, Tim McConnell, for not being taller or marrying someone taller, when they saw him behind the camera. Thomas invited McConell Sr., who seemed offended, to also join them, and he came running.
“He finds a way to get everywhere,” said McConnell hilariously as his father greeted the entire crew personally.
“I’m telling you right now, he’s a warrior, you’re right. It doesn’t matter how tall you are,” said Tim in response to the jab on his height. He then moved on to give his opinion about his son’s performance.
“Excellent, just disappointed he missed two foul shots. In the beginning, I kept saying, ‘Man! I wish he’d have made those two foul shots’ but he recovered and we won the game. I can forget about the foul shots; anything can happen in Game 7, we’re going to OKC to try to win a world championship. And my son’s a part of it, I can’t believe that.”
Isiah Thomas then asks Tim why his son claims that he is more strict on him than he is on T.J.’s sister, Megan McConnell.
“He says that, but that’s a lie. Let me tell you, my daughter won the undefeated state championship, he lost in the state championship, we lost two games. So undefeated, he didn’t play well in the state championship, he played great but we didn’t win it.”
“It’s unbelievable,” said the embarrassed Pacers veteran in disbelief.
“The truth hurts,” responded his father. But he made sure to remind him how proud he is of his achievements now.
“I can’t be more proud to say I have a son in the NBA and a daughter in the WNBA… this is a dream come true. And I’m going to OKC for my son to play in the championship game, to win the world championship.”
THIS MOMENT WITH T.J. MCCONNELL'S DAD 🥹
"I can't be more proud to say I have a son in the NBA and a daughter in the WNBA… this is a dream come true." pic.twitter.com/1ef0WiI8vj
— NBA (@NBA) June 20, 2025
T.J. McConnell has averaged 11.3 points, 4.5 assists, and 3.2 rebounds in six games played so far in this series. But the standout number is that he averages 2.3 steals per game in this duration. Averaging 19 minutes played per game in this series, McConnell is an essential part of the Pacers’ bench. Yet it is surprising to hear that his performance has already brought him into the discussion to potentially become the Finals MVP in this series.
Lakers Veteran Picks T.J. McConnell For Finals MVP
The NBA veteran twins, Markieff Morris and Marcus Morris, appeared on their podcast with the Playmaker following Game 6 of the NBA Finals. Marcus asked Markieff who he would pick for the Finals MVP in this series. The Lakers’ veteran felt that if T.J. McConnell continues to play like this in Game 7 and the Pacers win the championship, then he would pick him for the Finals MVP over Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam.
“If the Pacers win and he continues to play like he has been in these last couple of games, I’m going with T.J. McConnell, bruh.”
“F**k outta here!” responded his brother in disbelief.
“I’m going with T.J. f**king McConnell, he’s single-handedly winning these games for these boys, man. The loudest 12 in NBA history, anytime he scores like damn!”
T.J. McConnell was crucial in their Game 3 win of this series, and the Pacers’ coaching staff received a lot of criticism for not playing him in the fourth quarter of Game 5 when he had sparked their comeback in the third quarter. And now with his essential contributions in Game 6, he has certainly put his name in the elite discussion.
