The Knicks chatter is inescapable but, like everybody else around the NBA, Joel Embiid’s former teammate doesn’t know if the reigning MVP will end up in New York.
“Of course, he hears it,” Clippers forward PJ Tucker said Monday. “But you never know with these situations and how it’s going to play out, what guys are thinking, what’s happening behind closed doors. You never know.”
Tucker, 38, signed with the Sixers last summer with a reported “strong backing” from Embiid, who wanted the defensive-minded veteran to push Philly over the top.
Instead, the Sixers were bounced in the second round — losing two straight after taking a 3-2 series lead against the Celtics — and Tucker was traded last week with James Harden to the Clippers.
Tucker said he texted Embiid after the deal and believes — though can’t say for certain — that the franchise star was also blindsided.
“I wasn’t expecting to get traded, so I didn’t know. It kind of came out of nowhere,” Tucker said. “And from what I know, he didn’t know either. But you never know with this stuff, man. It’s the NBA. You never know.”
The Knicks, strapped with assets for a blockbuster trade, are monitoring Embiid’s availability, multiple sources said.
People around the league have pegged the center as New York’s ideal target, but a deal would require several things to align — including Embiid pushing for relocation.
And though the situation in Philly is potentially combustible after Harden’s forced trade, the Sixers have played well with four wins in their opening five games.
“Knowing [Embiid], being around him, he’s just pushing those guys to try to make them better,” Tucker said. “Work together and be around each other. They’ve got a new coach [Nick Nurse]. But he’s been around those guys, so they’re going to be a good team.”
Tucker added that the perception of dysfunction in Philly isn’t reality.
Over the last three seasons, two stars (Ben Simmons and Harden) boycotted games and forced their way out.
“It wasn’t like that all. The media is going to spin it how you want. But Philly has got a good team. We had a good team,” Tucker said. “What James [Harden] said — when we played, we won. It’s a good mix. It still could have worked. Wasn’t going to. But it was a good team. I think all the noise was just that: just noise.”
Now Tucker is on an aging superteam alongside Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Unlike Harden, however, Tucker didn’t want to leave Philadelphia.
“James’ situation had nothing to do with me,” Tucker said. “As much as I get thrown in it, I’m kind of a casualty in that sense.”
Tucker, who won a title with the Bucks in 2021, is gunning for his second championship — without Embiid but not by choice.
“I don’t want to play if I’m not playing for a team that has a chance to win it,” Tucker said. “Eighteen years, if I’m not chasing that then I can’t play. There’s no point. And this team definitely has a chance. You look at our personnel. I don’t know how many teams that have it on paper like we do.”