The Philadelphia 76ers had a considerably lengthy partnership with Tobias Harris, but suffice to say that both camps do not have fond sentiments over each other. The franchise was clearly disappointed with the way the veteran played relative to his albatross contract, while the forward himself has repeatedly showed his disdain toward the fanbase for the way he was treated.
To further aggravate the rift, Harris decided to show up for the Pistons in a way he never did for the 76ers. With Detroit facing a do-or-die situation in Game 7 of their tight first-round series against Orlando, the veteran forward put up 30 points, nine rebounds, and three steals while draining 11 of his 18 field goal attempts and five of his seven tries from three-point range.
This performance from Harris will probably not even linger for the 76ers faithful given that the team is already in a highly contested semifinals series against the Knicks, but it is certainly reflective –– at least from a comparative standpoint –– of what the vet was easily capable of but was unable to pull off when he was still a part of the organization.
Tobias Harris shows up for the Pistons in a way he never did for the 76ers
Remember when Harris was laying down eggs during elimination games when he was still with the 76ers? That was the pinnacle of the frustration among fans, so it simply felt natural when the team did not even attempt to re-sign him when he hit free agency a couple of years ago.
The 76ers signed Harris to a max deal back in 2019 to be a reliable option for the squad on the tertiary, but even with such a modulated role, he was never able to truly thrive. He was the textbook definition of tentativeness and an emblem of not showing up, and while it is objectively nice to see him flip the script for a tad in Detroit, some fans out in Philly are not going to be happy.
To be fair, there are far less expectations for him with the Pistons. First, he is on a very reasonable deal that actually ends this year. Second, he is counted on as more of an ancillary player for an otherwise young Detroit team still in need of experience. So far, he has ticked off those boxes.
Slowly but surely, Tobias Harris has become a positive addition to the Pistons for the most part, although that is certain to rub some people in 76ers circle the wrong way given how much he struggled when he was still with the franchise.
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