P.J. Tucker: Plays 27 minutes in Monday’s loss

Tucker made a surprisingly swift recovery from the mid-September surgery on his lower back, as he was cleared to play in the season opener last week against the Kings, despite not having seen any action during the preseason. Coach Earl Watson wasn’t satisfied with Tucker’s performance in that contest and had limited the veteran’s playing time in the subsequent two games, but the fact that he picked up 27 minutes Monday signals that he’s likely out of Watson’s doghouse. Even so, Tucker still remains behind T.J. Warren on the depth chart at small forward, and with Warren averaging 21.3 points per game, Tucker may not have much of an opportunity to cut into his playing time significantly while working off the second unit.