Miami Heat: Grading P.J. Tucker’s 2021-22 Season

Kyle Lowry #7 and P.J. Tucker #17 of the Miami Heat react prior to Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Kyle Lowry #7 and P.J. Tucker #17 of the Miami Heat react prior to Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
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Miami Heat
Fred VanVleet #23 of the Toronto Raptors and P.J. Tucker #17 of the Miami Heat reach for a rebound(Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images)

After the embarrassing Miami Heat first-round loss against the Milwaukee Bucks at the end of the season before this one, one of the biggest questions would be, who is going to play next to Bam Adebayo in the front court?

They lost Jae Crowder in the off-season, traded Kelly Olynyk mid-season for a guard, and tried to revive the career of Trevor Ariza. That wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great either.

With no young bigs on the roster to be developed, it was looking a little shaky heading into last year’s offseason, as nobody knew who Miami was going to get to lock up the power forward spot.

Then, on one random night when it seemed like all the good free agents were gone, the Miami Heat signed P.J. Tucker.

This came as a big shock to Miami Heat fans, as Tucker had just won a ring with the Bucks. Coming into the season, nobody knew what they were going to get from the then 36 and now 37-year-old forward, but the consensus was that he’d give a team great defense and everything he has in the tank. And Boy—was that an understatement.