Philadelphia 76ers: Tobias Harris has nothing left to prove

The Philadelphia 76ers continue to reap the benefits of Tobias Harris.

The Philadelphia 76ers are fifth in the Eastern Conference at the All-Star break, well below preseason expectations. It has been a rough go-around for the new-look Sixers — Al Horford continues to show his age, Joel Embiid‘s numbers are down, and Brett Brown’s seat gets hotter by the minute.

To some degree, there is still hope for the Sixers. Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons comprise a dynamic double-threat, no matter how the national media chooses to portray it. Horford’s new role off the bench suits him better, and Josh Richardson is finally back from (another) injury.

The Sixers have, in fact, undergone what most teams would consider an especially unfortunate slew of injuries this season. None have been serious to date — knock on wood — but several small injuries have piled up for all five starters.

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Over the second half of the season, the Sixers will ideally get more time together, to build chemistry and find rhythm. Horford should continue to anchor the second unit, while Glenn Robinson III seems like an apt replacement in the starting five. Let Furkan Korkmaz cook off the bench.

All this is to say, the season is not over. And one reason it is not over is Tobias Harris — the recipient of many unfair criticisms this season. For whatever reason, the collective Sixers fandom has decided it doesn’t care much for Harris. That’s unfortunate.

Harris is a player of extreme value for the Sixers. He’s a source of variety on offense, whether it’s spotting up from deep, curling into mid-range shots, or driving hard to the rim. Harris could stand to get more decisive at times, but he’s the second-leading scorer and a dynamic source of perimeter offense in the halfcourt.

On the season, Harris is averaging 19.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in 34.3 minutes per game. He’s shooting well from the field, to boot — .472/.363/.802, all improvements over last season’s run in Philadelphia.

Harris started the season stuck in molasses. He was ice cold from deep, looked out of sorts at small forward, and felt burdened by his massive offseason extension. Things felt liable to go south, fast.

But instead, Harris flipped the narrative on its head and has shown immense improvement all season. He’s a better defender, a more thoughtful passer, and a genuinely solid closer. The Sixers have gotten productive fourth-quarter performances from Harris on a regular basis, which hasn’t been the norm his entire career.

If you remove Harris’ first 10 games this season, he’s drilling 39.3 percent of his triples. He has returned to elite form from deep, a fact some fans have deliberately ignored. Harris may not represent the ideal use of $180 million, but he’s invaluable to the Sixers’ success.

Harris has spent the season operating at a disadvantage because of the circumstances of his arrival. The trade, which involved fan favorite Landry Shamet, and his $180 million extension have opened the floodgates for ceaseless critiques.

In a vacuum, Harris will probably never measure up to a max contract, but few recipients do. The Ben Simmons extension meant it was the Sixers’ last summer with cap space, and Harris was the most readily available source of star power. One can bemoan the Al Horford signing, sure, but the Harris deal was the only logical conclusion.

As for the trade that landed him in Philadelphia, it’s time for a serious reevaluation of how much the Sixers surrendered. Landry Shamet is a fine prospect — one of significant value to the Sixers. But he’s not Harris, and quite frankly, he’s not special. He’s not a good enough prospect to hold over Elton Brand‘s head when the return is Harris, a genuine top-50 talent.

The Sixers also gave up a couple first-round picks, which are expected to land in the 20s. The 2021 Heat pick, which was the topic of much debate at the time, has gotten progressively weaker. Wilson Chandler and Mike Muscala were expiring contracts who bordered on negative value.

Brand and the front office gave up a meager price for someone of Harris’ talent. It’s the kind of move a win-now organization tends to make. Harris has raised Philadelphia’s ceiling, and he continues to provide essential services on offense.

Philadelphia is in pursuit of a championship. There are several obstacles in the way right now, and the front office deserves blame for some of them (paging Al Horford…). But Harris, to date, has been a net positive. A genuinely good player in a genuinely important role.

He has returned to form as a shooter, grown immensely as a perimeter defender, and done as advertised in the scoring department. There isn’t much left for him to prove. The Sixers didn’t gut the roster to get him, and the contract hasn’t aged as poorly as some would like you to think it has.

Harris lacks a degree of flash, and he’s not the dynamic, quick-twitch scoring guard the Sixers always seem to need. He is, however, the Sixers’ third most valuable player and a necessary linchpin late in games. It’s time to appreciate what Harris brings to the table.

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He may never live up to the contract, but he’s not an unmitigated disaster threatening to submarine the Sixers’ title hopes.