Getty Tobias Harris #33 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts after making a three point basket against the Toronto Raptors in the first quarter of Game Six of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Tobias Harris was brought to the City of Brotherly Love via trade with the Los Angeles Clippers that shipped he, Boban Marjanovic and Mike Scott to the team at the NBA’s trade deadline.
“Honestly, I found out at 1:30 in the morning when [LA Clippers] Doc Rivers called my hotel room [in Charlotte],” Harris said after the trade.
“I was watching this Netflix series on Ted Bundy. When the phone rang, I was super scared. Who the heck is calling me at 1:30 in the morning while I’m watching this Netflix series? And the series is kind of scary itself! So, I was like, ‘What the heck is going on?’”
Harris is now a free agent.
Sixers fans wondering about Tobias Harris’ free agency plans: he told Sirius XM NBA Radio that he wants a “chance to win” & the team he chooses will be somewhere that goes to the Playoffs like what he did this year w/ 76ers and has a “system and chance to win.”
What’s next?
“He really enjoys being part of Philadelphia,” esteemed NBA writer, Steve Kyler told me on the Scoop B Radio Podcast.
“He likes that group. He likes playing for Brett Brown.
“If the 76ers come correct with the money, I think he’ll be back there. If they don’t I think Tobias is going shopping. Think about all of the places that dude has has already been traded from. He got traded from Milwaukee to Orlando, from Orlando to Detroit, from Detroit to the Clippers and the Clippers to Philly and he’s not 28 yet.”
Last week, Harris told Sirius XM NBA Radio that he wants a “chance to win” & the team he chooses will be somewhere that goes to the Playoffs. He also he’s looking to play within a a system that has a “chance to win.”
Here’s a suggestion: The Utah Jazz.
I discussed it on Monday with Mayes and Eytan on 973 ESPN:
They’re a growing young team led by Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.
Mitchell, the runner up for last season’s NBA Rookie of the Year Award was the 13th overall pick out of the University of Louisville in 2017.
Mitchell averaged 20.5 points per game on 43.7 percent shooting as a rookie while leading Utah to the second round of the playoffs.
“I was not supposed to be here,” Donovan Mitchell said in a recent Players Tribune article.
“I think that’s why I appreciate it so much. “There were even times where I told myself, ‘You’re not good enough.’ And I’m talking about when I was at Louisville. But we’re here.”
His rise in the NBA mirrors recently retired NBA icon, Dwyane Wade. They were overlooked in comparison to players in their respective draft classes.
If you recall, Wade got the world’s attention in game one of the Heat’s first round playoff series against the New Orleans Hornets in 2004.
With 1.3 seconds remaining and tied at 79 apiece, Wade hit Hornets point guard Baron Davis with an ankle breaker crossover and drove to the basket making a running jumper amid the outstretched arm of Hornets center Jamaal Magloire. The basket gave the Heat a 81-79 victory and Miami would end up winning the series in seven games.
The Jazz are buidling. Rudy Gobert was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year at the NBA Awards Monday night.
Gobert was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year at the NBA Awards Monday night.
Per SB Nation: The Jazz’s success so far is a testament to how dominant Rudy Gobert has been on the defensive end because the offense hasn’t been close. If the Jazz want to ensure a chance of winning a title they need their offense to match the level of their defense and the way to do that now is adding more talent.
More talent they did add. Have you heard of a guy named Mike Conley? Yup. That’s their new point guard.
If you’re tardy to the party: Conley was recently traded to the Jazz in exchange for Jae Crowder, Kyle Korver, Grayson Allen, and draft picks.
In his 12 years with the Grizzlies, Conley averaged 14.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1.5 steals.
Utah is on the rise.
Tobias Harris would be a great addition to a young Utah squad that has the defensive anchor in Gobert, a rising star with Mitchell and with the veteran leadership of Conley. “I’ve been to Utah a good amount of times,” Steve Kyler tells Scoop B Radio.
“Utah is a beautiful place and that organization is first class.”
Where will Tobias Harris land? The NBA free agency frenzy begins June 30.