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Tobias Harris Could Be Here To Start The Season

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Author Bob Cooney
Tobias Harris #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers celebrates during the fourth quarter against the Washington Wizards during Game Five of the Eastern Conference first round series at Wells Fargo Center on June 2, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Remember when NBA Draft Night was a real event in this city? Remember the excitement the night yielded when the results were Joel Embiid, Mikal Bridges, Markelle Fultz, Ben Simmons, Jahlil Okafor? No matter the positive and, mostly, negative results those picks laid upon this city, at the time of those selections, the excitement concerning the turnaround of the Sixers franchise was palpable.  Not anymore, or at least not today, as the NBA Draft will take place tonight in Brooklyn with the Sixers seemingly being an innocent bystander with no picks in either of the two rounds. Sure, there is speculation that a move or two could be made tonight. But that, sans a very minor move, seems to be a long shot. So the biggest question right now surrounds Tobias Harris.

How will the team will handle the forward? He is on the last year of a contract that will pay him over $39 million this season.  Of course, unloading him is the popular belief, as he has performed well below what his salary should mandate, whether that be due to his own ineffectiveness or due to the way coaches have chosen how to, or how not to, use him at the offensive end of the floor. 

…

If you look at the business aspect of things, dealing Harris makes sense. In July, teams who are above a certain amount of the salary cap will only be able to get back 110 percent of the salary they send out. Compared to 125 percent right now. And, a team in that situation won’t be have access to the tax payer mid-level exception in free agency and other mumbo jumbo that some collective bargaining agreement expert can explain better than me. 

But fans don’t care much about the business side. It’s what the product does between the lines that matter most. So where does this go with Harris. Ideally, you unload him for a couple of players who can contribute in a way new head coach Nick Nurse sees fit. Complimentary pieces that can not only accept the role Nurse lays upon them, but excel at it. In reality, though, that appears to be just wishful thinking. 

I’ve heard that there may be a team that wants the expiring contract and a team leader like Harris to grow a young team. Okay, but again I think that is just wishful thinking. 

You can’t help how you feel. I was told that as a youngster. And my feeling on this situation is this: I think Tobias Harris is here to start the season. I think Daryl Morey is looking at last season as a slight miss, not a major one. A miss that may be able to be fixed with the new head coach. A miss that was four minutes away on his home court and a two-point lead to get to the Eastern Conference Finals.
So yes, I do believe Harris is on this roster to begin the season. Whether it stays that way for the whole year probably depends on how the team is performing. Like it or not. 

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Cooney’s Corner: What's The New Recipe to Win An NBA Title?

The Philadelphia 76ers sat on their couches and watched the Denver Nuggets defeat the Miami Heat in the 2023 NBA Finals.

When another city gets to enjoy a championship, Philadelphia fans inevitably turn the conversation to how the local team should emulate the recently-crowned champs.

Bob Cooney put a different spin on the topic during the Cooney’s Corner segment on The John Kincade Show.

“We’re always talking about: how do you build this Sixers team? You want Harden, (or) you don’t want Harden. You need shooters, (or) you don’t need shooters. You need guys that can beat you off the dribble. Whatever it may be, I don’t know what the recipe is anymore.” -Bob Cooney

NBA teams and essentially all professional sports franchises should look for a blueprint based on previously successful teams. However, the concept isn’t always as simple as it seems.

The Sixers trudged through “The Process,” the most infamous rebuild in the history of North American professional sports, largely based on the idea that no NBA team could win without acquiring multiple superstars.

Recent NBA history, however, shows more variations of championship blueprints than the general consensus has given credit for at many points.

It’s been a decade since Sam Hinkie dealt Jrue Holiday to kick off “The Process” at the 2013 NBA Draft, but Sixers fans haven’t tasted the glory they hoped would follow a long period of deliberate tanking.

They’ve watched the Heat in the era of LeBron James and the “Big Three” pass by. They’ve watched the Golden State Warriors assemble an overwhelming roster (logically) thinking they were the best model to emulate.

However, they’ve now seen nine different franchises win the past 13 titles. Even the Golden State dynasty of four championships in eight years allowed four teams to win rings in the meantime.

What’s the real blueprint for a team to win the NBA Finals?

  • The Miami "Big Three" and the Golden State Warriors Dynasty

    The copy cat style of the NBA played a big part in setting “The Process” in motion. Miami assembled James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh to win two championships and advance to four NBA Finals from 2011-14.

    The stacked Warriors teams continued the narrative that only an All-Star level team would ever win the NBA Finals.

    “You got Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, (and) Steph Curry. Boom, you’re going to win championships.” -Cooney

    The Sixers aimed to assemble superstars with top-three picks in four straight drafts from 2014-17. Unfortunately, Jahlil Okafor, Ben Simmons, and Markelle Fultz unceremoniously exited the picture as key pieces of the organization.

    It’s been difficult for the Sixers to recover and surround Joel Embiid with unmistakable superstar talent.

     

  • Denver Nuggets- 2023 NBA Champions

    “In (Jamal) Murray and obviously (Nikola) Jokic, you have a star and a superstar…but basically, it’s a team of good players all around that know how to play a game.” -Cooney

    Jokic is hard to replicate. You’ll hear the conversations about how the league isn’t dominated by 7-footers anymore, but the Serbian is able to impact the game in as many different ways as any player in NBA history.

    Will Joel Embiid ever reach the level of Nikola Jokic and finally give Philadelphia its first ring since 1983?

  • Recent Eastern Conference Champions

    The Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics have advanced out of the Eastern Conference in three of the past four seasons.

    “I don’t know where we are now as far as how to win a championship. You have teams like the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics representing the Eastern Conference over the last couple years. I can’t really definitively say what brand of basketball they are (playing).” -Bob Cooney

    The subjective idea of “Heat culture” under Erik Spoelstra became a topic of conversation throughout the playoffs, but the Sixers (or any other NBA team) won’t build on the idea of developing seven undrafted free agents to fill out a roster surrounding Jimmy Butler or a player like him.

    They’d have as good of a chance of plucking a supporting cast of talent from Connor Thomas’ men’s league.

    “Jimmy Butler’s a really good player. I’m sorry. He’s not carrying anybody to an NBA championship.” -Cooney

    The Celtics pulled the rug out from under the Sixers in an infamous trade ahead of the 2017 NBA Draft.

    However, they don’t necessarily have the elite talent on the level of LeBron James or Steph Curry during their prime years.

    Does anyone consider Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown top-five players in the league?

  • Ask "Pop" That Question

    The San Antonio Spurs have been arguably the best organization in the league during the modern era with five championships since 1999. 

    “Back in the day, San Antonio changed up their offense in so many different ways but still had superstars in (David) Robinson and (Tony) Parker and (Manu) Ginobli and learned how to play and then had to sprinkle players here and there.” -Cooney

    The coaching of Gregg Popovich became big part of their ability to maintain their spot at the top of the league through their most recent championship in 2014.

    NBA teams are recycling coaches at incredible rates in recent seasons.

    While Nick Nurse brings a good pedigree to the sideline in Philadelphia, you won’t find too many people arguing that coaching has been the primary weakness of the Sixers in their six consecutive playoff exits.

     

  • What Can the 76ers learn?

    John spoke about how the blueprints might apply in Philadelphia.

    “Is anybody going to try to emulate the way the Sixers are trying?” -John Kincade

    James Harden will turn 34 before the 2023-24 season begins, and Joel Embiid is now 29 in the prime years of his career without enough team success to celebrate.

    “I think you could take a step back from the production of James Harden and be a better basketball team.” -Kincade

    His analysis of the Sixers only proved Bob’s point that there is no “definitive diagram” for Daryl Morey to work with.

  • What Does It All Mean?

    So, how do you build an NBA champion?

    “It seemed so much more defined through the 2000s, and now that we’ve gotten to the 2020s, I don’t know that it is.” -Bob Cooney

    Enjoy The John Kincade Show streaming live on YouTube weekday mornings from 6am-10am.

     

Bob Cooney has been a part of the Philadelphia sports scene for more years than he wants to admit after 25 years in print media, and now in his seventh year at The Fanatic. Throughout the years, he has covered all sports from the World Series, multiple Final Fours and Regional Finals in men’s college basketball, to the U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club and the 76ers. He takes his sports media knowledge and background to a new level by joining a conversation with the passionate fans of this great city. He writes about the Sixers, Eagles, Flyers, and Phillies for the Fanatic.

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