Sixers Coach Gives Simple Response to Benching Tobias Harris
Due to the laundry list of injuries the Philadelphia 76ers have been dealing with, Nick Nurse has been forced to get creative with his lineups. After Buddy Hield had a resurgence moving to the second unit, some have called for him to do the same with another player. However, Nurse isn't ready to make such a move yet.
Over the past few weeks, Tobias Harris' play has been up-and-down. His low point was capped off against the New York Knicks Tuesday, when he finished with just two points on 1-for-6 shooting from the field.
After the game, Nurse was asked about the idea of potentially bringing Harris off the bench. The longtime coach proceeded to give a simple yet blunt response to the thought. “Nope, not yet,” Nurse said, via ClutchPoints.
Nurse also followed up by stating he felt Harris' outing against the Knicks stemmed from how he was defended that night.
“I think some catch-and-shoot threes that were great passes out. Those don't go. Again, I think they did a really good job of not letting him see the ball much and when he did have it, they were really up in him and rounding out his drives and the shots he did get were really contested,” Nurse continued.
On the year as a whole, Harris' numbers are still in a good place. Through 59 games, he is averaging 17.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG, and 3.2 APG.
With the Sixers being in the thick of the Eastern Conference standings, staying competitive in these coming weeks is crucial for playoff position. Tyrese Maxey is doing what he can to lead the charge, but can only do so much as one player. As one of the longer tenured players on the team, Harris needs to get back on track for this team to remain afloat.
