Tobias Harris To Philadelphia 76ers – What is Behind?

Tobias Harris and Boban Marjanovic ended up in Philadelphia!

This is something nobody could predict. In the sea of possible deals, nobody really saw this coming, especially with all the lights pointed towards Anthony Davis, and the recruitment of other big superstars such as Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Kyrie Irving.

A move like this one could provoke an interesting ending of the trade block, in which we might see some unexpected and big moves.

Regarding this one, it is what both franchises wanted.

Philly got Harris, Boban, and Mike Scott, while on the other side, Clippers received Landry Shamet, Wilson Chandler and Mike Muscala, with two first-round picks, and two second-rounders.

LA → Philly

A look at Tobias Harris' best moments as a member of the Clippers. 🏀 pic.twitter.com/b3goY7Ra6m

— NBA TV (@NBATV) February 6, 2019

The Clippers are clearing the space in the salary cap so that they can land some big names during the next summer. Many are involved, but two of them are something they wanted for a long time, Kawhi Leonard and Anthony Davis.

And this deal came after Davis’ message to the Pelicans in which he specifically named four clubs where he wants to be traded. Among them are the Clippers. So the big clean up had to be done immediately.

They were losing the pace in the Western Conference playoff race, and it was better to quit chasing the postseason, which would be probably missed anyway, and to start rebuilding the squad and preparing it for the upcoming reconstruction.

Harris had to go, because his contract was about to expire this summer, and Clippers don’t have the financial possibilities to offer him a deal which might be a suitable one for his requests.

With four picks they received in this deal, Clippers acquired excellent resources for negotiations in the future. They can use them in some blockbusting trade, or in smaller ones, which will definitely happen after big fishes are caught. If anything else, they could be used for adding more depth to their roster. Shamet is the kind of a player who will quickly adapt to Clippers’ philosophy, and the kid really does have tremendous potential. Chandler is solid and Muscala too, and they will also be valuable trade assets in the future.

Now, something about Philly’s interest in this trade.

The 76ers now have probably the best starting lineup in the league when looking names besides Golden State and the Boston Celtics. Examining the bench, we see that they have solid backups, and they be even better once Zhaire Smith and Markelle Fultz recover from their injuries.

The 76ers are planning to build a new Big 4 including Tobias Harris and Jimmy Butler, per @wojespn.

Is Philly the new team to beat in the East? pic.twitter.com/UfOlsw0Wge

— ESPN (@espn) February 6, 2019

Boban is here, and despite what many think, he will get more chances to play in Philly than in LA, because 76ers do play a bit slower. Don’t forget that Marjanovic has one of the best Player Efficiency Ratings in the history of the league, and each time he is on the court, he is very productive on both ends.

With the above-mentioned starting five, anything less but the Conference Finals this season would be a great disaster for Brett Brown and his team. They have enough time to create chemistry and looking at the individual quality of each player, it should be a quick process.

Coach Brown has four NBA titles as Gregg Popovich assistant, and he for sure knows how to fit in all the big names in one team. Though, there are some doubts about his quality as a head coach, but we will soon see are they right.

We are anxious to see if this deal triggers more of them until the deadline.