Philadelphia 76ers: Tobias Harris surging statistically

Despite an expiring contract this summer, the Philadelphia 76ers need to prioritize extending the statistical juggernaut Tobias Harris.

The 26-year-old Tobias Harris has fallen nothing short of efficient in his newfound role with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers’ forward amassed 280 minutes in just eight games with Philadelphia, equating to exactly 35 minutes per game. Harris scored a total of 175 points thus far while adding 62 rebounds and 21 assists, good for an average of 21.9 points per game, 2.6 assists, and 7.8 rebounds.

In the four games Harris played in following the NBA All Star break, he logged 37.3 minutes on a nightly basis, averaging 26 points per game with the addition of 8.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. The Sixers won three of those four games, thanks to the help of Harris, who registered two double-doubles and at least 20 points in each affair.

Prior to the NBA All Star break, the Philadelphia 76ers placed 17th in the league in regard to percentage of two-point field goal attempts (64.3 percent) and 21st in percentage of points courtesy of two-point attempts (52.1 percent).

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With the acquisition of Harris and his 8.5 two-point attempts per game, Philadelphia has improved to third in the league for percentage of two-point field goal attempts (69.1 percent) and sixth in percentage of points off of two-point attempts (57.7 percent) post All-Star break. Additionally, after the NBA All Star break the Sixers’ percentage of assisted two-point field goals made improved by 3.9%, their percentage of total unassisted field goals made improved by 1.3 percent, and their two-point attempts and two-point makes are both higher than before.

Harris’ shots come from an average distance of 14.2 feet, and yet he is shooting a team best 60.0 percent on shots ranging from 16 feet to beyond the three-point line. Likewise, 57.6 percent of Harris’ shots are two-point field goal attempts, but he is making 42.0 percent of his three-point attempts and shooting 66.7 percent on corner three-point attempts for Philadelphia.

Interestingly enough, Harris is 16th on the Sixers in percentage of two point field goals that are assisted and has the lowest percentage of assisted three-point attempts of qualifying players, indicative of his shot creating capabilities. Not only is Harris shooting a career high 43.2 percent from deep, but also, he is attempting a career high 10.6 two-point shots a game while converting a career high 5.7 two-point attempts this season.

Harris’ field goal percentage is north of 50.0 percent for the first time in his career and he is shooting 55.1 percent from the field with Philadelphia, significantly better than any stint of his with Orlando, Detroit, Milwaukee, and Los Angeles.

Harris has registered a career-high effective field goal percentage (57.1 percent) and true shooting percentage (61.3 percent) this season, both at the very least 3.6 percent better than any of his last seven seasons. Harris’ true shooting percentage is almost up to 70.0 percent with Philadelphia with only a 21.0 percent usage percentage.

Harris has earned a player efficiency rating, or per minute-production (a score of 15 is the league average), of 20.9 with Philadelphia, greater than that of Ben Simmons and Jimmy Butler. Harris’ offensive rating this season is the best in his career and good for the highest among qualifying players of at least 100 minutes on Philadelphia.

Both Harris’ shooting efficiency and scoring efficiency are within Philadelphia’s top three, as are the rest of his traditional shooting percentages. Harris is averaging just 1.1 turnovers per game, losing the basketball just twice and making only four bad passes for turnovers with the Sixers.

Harris is just second behind Joel Embiid in point scoring for Philadelphia and his value added of 271.8 is at least 10 points higher than the likes of Jimmy Butler and Luka Doncic. Even Harris’ true shooting percentage is better than ones of Kyrie Irving and LeBron James.

Harris is thriving with Philadelphia following the NBA All Star break, shooting over 50 percent from the field off of the dribble (0-7 dribbles) and over 42.0 percent from both the field and outside the perimeter on catch and shoot opportunities. When Harris is defended tightly/very tightly (ranging from 0-4 feet of space) his field goal percentage is 59.4 percent and he shoots 60.7 percent from the field when there is 15-7 seconds on the shot clock.

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With a true shooting percentage of at least 60 percent, Harris is the only player in the NBA with an average of at least 20 points per game to shoot at least 50.0 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the arch all together.