After Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Monday that P.J. Tucker has expressed frustration with his current situation in Los Angeles, the Clippers forward publicly addressed the issue later in the day, speaking to Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints about being removed from the team’s rotation.
Tucker, who was sent from Philadelphia to L.A. last month as part of the James Harden blockbuster, appeared in each of his first 12 games as a Clipper, but averaged just 14.4 minutes in those contests, which would be a career low. He has been held out of the club’s past six games, with rookie Kobe Brown taking his place in the rotation.
“I don’t have a role on this team right now,” Tucker said on Monday when asked if he’s OK with his current role. “I’m not playing. I’m out of the lineup. It was a decision that was made, and I’m living with it right now. But obviously, I feel like I still got a lot to contribute to a team to be able to win, whether that’s here or somewhere else.”
Asked if he’s prioritizing playing time or contending for a championship, Tucker said ideally he’d have “both,” pointing out that he has played big minutes for multiple title contenders – including the 2021 champion Bucks – in recent years.
“It’s got to be a healthy compromise. I know myself, my worth. I know what I bring,” he said. “I know what I’ve brought. I know what I can continue to bring. And with that, I want to be able to go to a good team that I can be able to help that.”
Charania’s reporting on Monday indicated that Tucker and the Clippers are discussing ways to either get him regular minutes in L.A. or send him to a new team, with multiple contenders said to be monitoring the situation. When Azarly asked Tucker whether he sees a role for himself with the Clippers, the 38-year-old initially replied, “It’s not there,” before acknowledging that “obviously” that could change down the line.
“Coming here, you try to figure out the best way possible to be able to do what you do,” Tucker said. “But, you know, like I said, sometimes you see it and it ain’t there. Sometimes you see it, but the team doesn’t see it the way you see it.”
While Tucker is considered a versatile defender, a hard-nosed competitor, and a locker room leader, his offensive production is essentially non-existent (4.8 PPG since the start of the 2020/21 season) and he’ll turn 39 in the spring. He’s also earning about $11MM this season, with a $11.54MM player option for 2024/25, so his contract likely won’t have positive value on the trade market, which could complicate any Clippers efforts to work out a deal.
Tucker could promise to not exercise the option for next season. He could be a hush hush expiring contract which would be a lot easier to trade?
Then he’ll call the GM a liar because they don’t offer a new deal for more than the vet minimum…
Haha, yes probably.
All joking aside I think that’s the expectation. That’s what he’s worth now, yhe vet minimum, two or three million per season.
If he doesn’t accept this then he’ll sit on the Clippers bench for the next year and a half.
So he has to decide for himself. Does he want to play or does he want that big check player option next year?
His last chance to get a good paycheck. It’s a obvious choice
Like 6 fouls a game.
Tucker should thank Harden for getting him a nice contract when he’s old and done. Harden is mad he took a pay cut and didn’t make max cause the money was spent on Tucker and House.
To borrow a line from one of my favorite movies, Moneyball….”if you still have a lot to contribute, why aren’t you contributing?
A basket every other game ain’t a lot.
He needs to keep collecting paychecks to afford for his sneakers. For a once undrafted journeyman on the other side of 35, he’s getting quite a bit of attention from Shams.
If you have to be buried on a bench, then it might as well be on a Lueless coached team. He rethinks his lineup/rotation every few days, and at some point he might well get around to you.
With Tucker, though, he just looks done. He’s LeBron’s age, but without the freak athleticism or the same (or perhaps any) conditioning program.
He was cooked last year… Better off with Pat Bev…