NEW YORK – There have been times over the past five years when the dislike of Tobias Harris in Philly was evident. He overpaid. He misses the big shots. He’s not that guy.
Perhaps Saturday’s efforts will bring him some love.
In the absence of Joel Embiid and amid the struggles of James Harden and Tyrese Maxey, Harris scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Game 4. He is the biggest reason the Sixers swept the net and won 96-88.
Embiid missed the match due to a knee injury. Maxie and Harden combined to shoot 10 for 38. Harris went 11 for 19. For an analytical mindset, he was a high-level plus-15 player.
“He was great. He was attacking the basket. Finishing around the rim. Knocking out a triple. Defendingly, being great,” Harden said. “It’s a special performance for him in closed session, and we needed him.”
Read more: Quick Thoughts: Sixers sweep of the nets gives injured Joel Embiid plenty of recovery time
They needed it when it mattered most. This is unusual, at least recently. Harris has had his moments, but the Sixers usually require Embiid to make big shots and big stops late in games. Maxey and Harden are more notable offensive options as well. More often than not, Harris is the safety valve. On Saturday, when the Sixers needed a hoop or a turnover, they went to Harris. Again and again, Harris delivered.
With 8 minutes and 40 seconds to play, Harris returned to the game, called Bridges on defense, then forced a spin, volleying the ball out of Bridges’ hands and cleared off his shin.
Seventy seconds later, Harris pulled Spencer Dinwiddie’s left elbow into the paint, turned, rose, dropped a jumper through a net-keeper’s foul, and made the free throw: he led by four points. About three minutes later, Harris did it to Dinwiddie again (not a foul this time) and gave the Sixers a nine-point lead. The Nets lost interest, and the Sixers got their first sweep of a best-of-seven series in 38 years.
Finally, with 1:37 to play, Harris froze the game with his second three-pointer.
It was his ninth 20-point double in 48 playoff games. It may have been his finest hour.
Harris said, “Yes.” “I would say so.”
The Sixers locker room was abuzz with Harris’ play.
“Back off, back off, back off, fade away,” Maxie called out to Harris. “Back off, back off, back off, back off!”
Read more: Sixers edge Brooklyn Nets, 96-88, to sweep first-round series without Joel Embiid
Harris is often criticized for what he is not. It’s not all stars. It’s not worth $180 million. It’s not Jimmy Butler.
It’s hard to argue any of these points, but none of them are his fault. He has played in teams with Joel Embiid and either James Harden or Ben Simmons. He didn’t pay himself, the Sixers did. And Butler’s account isn’t entirely accurate.
Harris hears every word: “They always are [expletive] In my name! Harris said.
Unfortunately, Harris is not appreciated for what he is He is.
He plays hard. He plays almost every match. He plays whatever role the team needs. With Simmons running things, he had to be a running back scorer, specializing in one-on-one dribbling. With Harden, a dominant shooter on the ball, Harris was an instant shooter, slashed, and dunker.
He is a consummate professional. The ultimate teammate. Truly, the quintessential Philly athlete: humble, selfless, blue-collar. But Fely doesn’t like him.
Go and deduce.
“No one on our team speaks highly of Tobias,” said PJ Tucker. “To be able to switch. Senior guard. Guard guards. Take advantage of teams with junior guards.”
Harris hasn’t been asked to do this since the Sixers traded Simmons for Harden at the trade deadline last season. He played a more passive role, averaging 14.7 points and 5.7 rebounds, four fewer than his career averages over the previous six seasons. Then the 2023 playoffs happened.
Harris entered Game 4 on Saturday averaging 18.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in the postseason. On Saturday, he showed everyone that at the age of 31 with only a year left on his contract, he still got it.
“I missed it,” Harris admitted. “I work on my craft for moments like this. I understand what kind of game it is in the playoffs: players have to shine and display their scoring ability at different points and at different times.”
That’s why the Sixers cost so much.
In 2019, the Sixers traded two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and Landry Shamet. Then Jimmy Butler commissioned them, if you are to believe the post-2019 drama in which the Sixers reportedly chose to sign Harris over Butler.
In fact, Butler’s destructive relationship with trainer Brett Brown and his personality clash with Ben Simmons made it impossible for him to return.
And no, Tobias Harris is not Jimmy Butler. And no, maybe Harris doesn’t deserve the $39.3 million he made this season. Not every match, anyway.
It was worth every penny on a Saturday afternoon.