We love his versatility in order to put a defensive team on the court, where all five guys can defend, while also having enough shooting and scoring to win games.” “He brings both shooting and most importantly, the ability to defend a lot of perimeter players. Tucker is the perfect addition to this team,” Heat President Pat Riley said. And eventually, after five years of grinding overseas, summer league stints and more, Tucker returned to the NBA with Phoenix in 2012. He became a perennial All-Star and MVP candidate in Europe. “I’ll see you at home.”Ĭooler heads prevailed. It was on a long bus ride after a game in Ukraine in 2008 when he grabbed his phone, turned on the international roaming feature - his cell bills got as big as $8,000 a month in those days - and called his agent. He was a second-round pick by Toronto, ended up in what’s now called the G League, then bounced around a bunch of international leagues. He was the Big 12’s player of the year at Texas in 2006, but his NBA success wasn’t exactly instant after turning pro. Tucker almost stopped playing basketball a long time ago. “I went to Milwaukee with one thing in mind,” Tucker said. He became a huge part of Milwaukee’s title run and instantly became a fan favorite, never more so than when he held a bottle of champagne in one hand and the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the other during the team’s championship celebration. It was already clear that Milwaukee was going to contend for the title it ultimately grabbed by rallying from a 2-0 deficit against Phoenix in the finals. That said, it is important to note that Tucker was not displeased about getting moved from Houston - a team that was at the bottom of the NBA - to the Bucks last spring. The way they play, the guys, the personnel, I knew the way I would fit in. At the trade deadline this year before I got traded to Milwaukee, Miami was at the top of the list. “It’s been a long time coming,” Tucker said of joining the Heat. It’s also a place where he had wanted to be for years. It is his third franchise in 2021 alone, the fifth NBA club of his career, no less than the 13th different professional team from seven different countries that he has joined along the way. The sneaker collection is well-traveled, as is Tucker.Īfter helping the Milwaukee Bucks win last season’s NBA championship, the 36-year-old forward is starting anew with the Miami Heat. “I think I’ve got them in six places,” Tucker said, ticking down a list of places of where he’s either had or currently has a residence. He has so many that it’s not easy to remember all the places where he’s kept them. Many thousands of pairs, some worn, most not, all cherished. Tucker to begin getting settled at a new home in Miami, consider all the places in this country where he stores his collection of sneakers. MIAMI (AP) - To realize how challenging it was for P.J.
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