PJ Tucker spent years as the defensive soul of the Houston Rockets, but it wasn’t until he got to Milwaukee, a team where he could simply be a cog in a great defense rather than the heart of it, that he won a championship. Tucker was eased into his role with the Bucks, playing just 20 minutes per night in the regular season, but as the playoffs wore on, Tucker became a bigger and bigger part of the Bucks rotation, averaging 30 minutes in the postseason.
His three-point shooting wasn’t what it was in Houston (just 32.2 percent in these playoffs), but his value was as a defensive pest who, along with Jrue Holiday, allowed Milwaukee to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo as a roving off ball defender without sacrificing on-ball pressure. That partnership worked great and he and Giannis seemed to form a quick bond en route to a title. As Tucker entered free agency, he was sure to hear overtures from most every contender as his defense is something every team wants to have on their bench.
Ultimately, Tucker chose to sign with the revamped Miami Heat, who had executed a sign-and-trade for Kyle Lowry earlier in the day as well as new deals for Duncan Robinson and Jimmy Butler. Per Shams Charania, the deal is for two years, $15 million with a player option on the second year as the Heat look to vault into the contender strata in the East.
PJ Tucker is signing a two-year, $15 million deal with Miami, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. https://t.co/Pti5ZYmeg0
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 3, 2021
That dollar figure explains why Tucker won’t be back in Milwaukee, as the best they could do was the $5.9 million taxpayer mid-level.
Tucker certainly fills a need for the Heat as a defender at the four, but that shooting dropoff from last year has to be a tad concerning for Miami fans given how they otherwise only have Robinson and Tyler Herro as plus shooters at the moment. Still, Tucker’s versatility defensively gives the Heat a lot of great lineups they can throw out there on that end and what he did for the Bucks in the playoffs speaks for itself.
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/pj-tucker-nba-free-agency-miami-heat-sign/