Who Is Sixers' Third Head of Key Trio? Doc Rivers Discusses
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When people think of the Philadelphia 76ers, two faces pop up immediately; Joel Embiid and James Harden.
These two come to mind for rightful reasons, with Embiid being by far the most significant piece to come out of "The Process" era of Sixers' history, averaging MVP-caliber numbers over the previous two seasons which have been reflected in his back-to-back runner-up status in the award voting.
Harden, one of the league's most recognizable faces for over a decade at this point, joined the team last year for Ben Simmons and a slew of picks and players, helping develop younger players like Tyrese Maxey since joining.
But many fail to place a firm grip on who the third face of the team is, with the aforementioned Maxey, along with Tobias Harris being the two leading candidates.
Just as there are fine reasons for seeing Embiid and Harden as the two heads of the team, Maxey and Harris have fruitful resumes.
Starting with Maxey, who is in his third year with the Sixers, having filled in for the absence left by Simmons last season. Since then, the former Kentucky guard is averaging 18 points on 47 percent shooting, making him one of the key parts of Philadelphia's future.
As for Harris, who has been an almost veteran figure on the team since joining back in 2019, proving to be a consistent bucket for the Sixers, averaging 18 points and six rebounds during that time period.
Prior to Philadelphia's game against Dallas on Thursday night, Doc Rivers sat down with TNT's Reggie Miller and discussed his feelings on the matter.
"We have different guys, we really do," explained Rivers, "There are certain nights, and most of those nights, it's Tyrese Maxey. Some of those nights it will be Tobias Harris, and that's fine. It's good to have that."
Granted, Rivers admits that he'd be more than happy to not just limit it to three players, although Maxey and Harris are the two prime candidates.
"I'm for all four of them in one night if we can get it," he finished. "For the most part, it's Maxey as far as scoring, but Tobias Harris can really score the basketball, and we don't go away from him at all."
Declan Harris contributes to All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him on Twitter: @DecIanH.
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