T.J. McConnell credits his dad for becoming such a good NBA player: "We were in the gym getting up a thousand shots a day"

T.J. McConnell credits his dad for becoming such a good NBA player: “We were in the gym getting up a thousand shots a day” originally appeared on Basketball Network.

T.J. McConnell has come a long way and all his hard work is paying off, which was evident from his Finals run with the Indiana Pacers when he was one of the best players on the team.

He recalls how he worked to be where he is right now and admitted his dad, Tim, pushed him to be the player he is right now.

T.J., who went undrafted in 2015, shared how he spent countless hours working out in the gym with his father since the 8th grade.

It wasn’t any ordinary workout.

“Me and him took it to another level, workout-wise. We were in the gym getting up a thousand shots a day,” he shared on “The Christian Kuntz” podcast.

McConnell admitted that at first, he had a hard time understanding what his dad wanted to achieve. He said it reached a point where he took it personally. But at this point in his career, he finally realized what his dad was trying to get at.

“In terms of him being hard on me, I just think he saw something in me and wanted to push me to another level. At the time, I didn’t really understand it and I took it personal. But when you look back on it, he pushed me to get where I am at today. So I am super grateful,” T.J. confessed.

How McConnell reached his NBA dream

In the 2015 Draft, T.J. was left undrafted.

However, that did not dampen his hopes of making it to the NBA. He needed to continue to work hard in the same way that his dad and he had in the past.

It was a grind, but his resiliency eventually paid off. McConnell admits that all his hard work paid off in the end. He caught a break that same year thanks to some help from Philadelphia 76ers player development coach Chris Babcock.

“When I came in, Chris Babcock, he’s like, ‘You need to stand out.’ He’s like, ‘Nobody picks up full court. And you need to make that your calling card,'” McConnell said on “The Young Man and the Three” podcast. “So we got in the gym three times a day, got in elite shape and he’s like, ‘You’re going to pick everyone up full court and that’s what you’re going to hang your hat on.’ And it’s something that I’ve created an identity about.”

McConnell reaping dividends

Since his days with the Sixers, McConnell has stepped up his level of play with the Pacers. He has become an essential player off the bench and has shown his willingness to step up when his team needs him to.

In the 2025 NBA Finals, T.J. showed that, particularly in Game 6. He was a key figure in that game despite playing with a calf injury. He helped lift the Pacers over the Oklahoma City Thunder, forcing a winner-take-all Game 7. McConnell finished with 18 points with four rebounds, four assists and two steals in 22 minutes of action in that game.

“He’s unbelievable, man. He’s unbelievable. I don’t even have the words. He’s the ‘Great White Hope.’ That’s how we call him. He’s just amazing. He continues to go downhill and put pressure on the defense and man, he’s unbelievable,” His teammate Tyrese Haliburton said after the game.

Tge 2025 Finals performance has elevated McConnell to another level. The Pennsylvania native proved that even with limited playing time, he can be a difference-maker.

The coming season should be interesting with McConnell and the Pacers, who want to prove that the Finals appearance wasn’t a fluke.

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 24, 2025, where it first appeared.

T.J. McConnell credits his dad for becoming such a good NBA player: “We were in the gym getting up a thousand shots a day”

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