Miami Heat players who could disappoint this season: PJ Tucker
On paper, PJ Tucker is exactly the kind of player the Miami Heat wanted to add this summer. He’s a gritty power forward who can help space the floor for Bam Adebayo.
However, there are definitely some red flags to note when discussing Tucker’s game. His 3&D presence is undoubtedly valuable, but half of that description may be fading.
The one part of Tucker’s game that is clear is that he’s an elite defender. He clamped up Kevin Durant in the playoffs last year, and not many players are able to do that at the level he did.
Despite this, the notion that Tucker is an elite 3&D player may not be true for much longer. He’s always been a solid three-point shooter, but based on the numbers, he’s never been elite.
In the 10 NBA seasons Tucker has played in, he has never cracked the 40% mark from deep. While that doesn’t mean he’s a bad shooter, he’s also only ever shot above 38% once.
Before being traded to Milwaukee last year, Tucker was shooting 31.4% from three-point range. He did shoot 39.4% in 20 games with the Bucks, but that inconsistency could be cause for concern.
Ideally, Tucker comes in and shoots well from deep, thus spacing the floor for Miami’s scorers. However, there is a chance he struggles to shoot consistently and ends up not meeting fans’ high expectations.