PHILADELPHIA — Chants of “Tobi! Tobi” rang through the Wells Fargo Center as Tobias Harris tried to hit just one more triple to get his first 40-point game. The Philadelphia 76ers forward was unable to get there, settling for a season-high 37 points in a dominant win over the Sacramento Kings.
Harris posted his highest-scoring game as a Sixer on 14-25 shooting from the field while also tallying seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. He attacked the rim strongly time after time while sprinkling in jumpers from around the floor. The 76ers led for the final 40 minutes of game time in a huge win that did not feature Joel Embiid. This game is a strong candidate to be considered Harris' best as a Sixer.
Not only did Harris uplift the Sixers offensively but he played a huge role on defense by guarding Domantas Sabonis. The physical center and wise playmaker operates as the central hub for the Kings' offense, using his strong frame to wear down his defender. With Philly needing to show some defensive competency without Embiid, Harris was up to the task, playing a vital role in coaxing a 14-point effort out of a player who averaged 20.2 points per contest coming into the game.
“I thought that set the tone for myself, personally,” Harris said. “Defending, taking on that challenge and then early on in the game, that fueled a lot of energy towards the offensive end for us. Getting stops, getting out in transition, creating some easy looks — that was the game plan at shootaround today and it paid off tonight. I thought the whole group did a great job of locking into that game plan and understanding what we wanted to accomplish out there.
“That's what makes these type of games special,” the 76ers veteran said, “is to be able to do it on the offensive end but also be able to lock in defensively as well.”
Hearing the crowd chant his name was “a lot of fun” for Harris. But he wishes things played out a little differently. Chucking up threes before he was subbed out left him without the points he needed to get to 40.
“I wish it was a closer game 'cause I then I probably would've gotten it,” Harris said with a smile. “The lesson of the story is don't force it, just let it flow.”
Tobias Harris on hearing the crowd chant his name and his regrets on how he tried to get to 40 points: pic.twitter.com/dafkPWkuIh
— Sam DiGiovanni (@BySamDiGiovanni) January 13, 2024
Nick Nurse mentioned how Harris was gassed at the end of a busy first half after scoring 23 points and standing up to Sabonis' might, even managing to force turnovers from him early in the game. He said his request to Harris was for him to “forget about that and get revved up to do it again this half.”
Although Harris didn’t erupt in the second half as he did in the first, the 76ers maintained a steady lead throughout the full duration of the final two quarters. His two-way contributions powered his shorthanded crew to a win after three ugly losses.
“I think that I can always say he does it in a lot of ways,” Nurse said. “I thought he got some transition. I thought he got some touches around the basket on some good screening from guys. He certainly made a good amount of one-on-one buckets as well. He can kind of score a variety of ways and I think he used all of them tonight. Got to the free-throw line six times as well. So it was good.”
Over the years, Tobias Harris has received loads of criticism for playing below his contract's value (which is more on the front office that gave him the contract than on him) and no-showing in big moments (which is his fault). He has been one of the main faces of the 76ers' disappointing playoff exits. The team's social media pages tout him as an All-Star candidate yet the fan base views it with not an ounce of legitimacy. Some games, the Sixers look like a three-headed monster. But in far too many, they do not.
More games like tonight won’t make Harris an All-Star. But they can build habits that make him into a player who is ready to perform in the most important games. It's up to Harris to take in what he was able to do in this game, feel the pressure when it comes and rise above it, not crumble because of it.
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