Philadelphia 76ers: The untradable Tobias Harris

The untradable Harris: Conclusion

The fact is that this Sixers team, as they are currently constructed, needs certain things from their starting power forward. He needs to be able to rebound, which Harris does better than everyone else that I mentioned.

Embiid can’t grab them all and the team already needs to improve in that area. He needs to be able to run the floor with Tyrese Maxey in transition and be able to drive it to the rim or shoot the three when Harden hits him. He needs to be a better-than-average defender, particularly when surrounded by players with suspect defense.

*Cough*, Furkan Korkmaz, Harden, Georges Niang, Shake Milton, *Cough*

This player needs to be able to handle the ball in space and hit open cutters and shooters on time, as well as feed the post. He also needs to be reliable, in both body and spirit, willing to sacrifice ego to do what is best for the team.

The truth is that Tobias Harris is undervalued and unappreciated. He is the perfect player, with the perfect skillset and temperament, to play alongside Maxey, Harden, and Embiid. In most deals, they would lose many of the positive attributes that he provides by being the consummate jack of all trades.

Maybe the Sixers get a better scorer but they lose his defense and rebounding. Or vice versa. They might bring in someone with an ego who becomes divisive in the locker room. Trade value comes down to what he means to a particular team and he probably means more here than he might somewhere else.

The reason Harris has not been traded yet is because he is in the right place already. The Sixers listened, but at the end of the day, nothing seemed like it would improve the team. The 76ers are in win-now mode and Embiid will not be in MVP form forever.

The Philadelphia 76ers need someone at the power forward spot who can do a little bit of everything, with very few glaring weaknesses, and there isn’t anyone on the market who fits that description better than Harris. You might as well shift your trade talk to Matisse Thybulle or someone else, Tobi-haters. Tobias Harris isn’t going anywhere.