The Utah Jazz have purportedly long had their eyes on forward Tobias Harris, but his trade to the Philadelphia 76ers likely hurts their chances of landing him in free agency.
If you had taken a poll of Utah Jazz fans on who they’d most like to see their team pursue this offseason, I can almost guarantee that LA Clippers forward Tobias Harris would be near the top of the list. Or, as I should say, FORMER LA Clippers forward Tobias Harris. That’s right, late Tuesday night or early Monday morning, depending how you look at it, it was announced that Harris had been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski provided the full details of the trade. Along with Harris, the Sixers also received big man Boban Marjanovic and Mike Scott while the Clippers netted quite a haul. Philly sent them promising rookie Landry Shamet, Wilson Chandler, Mike Muscala, along with two valuable first-round picks and two second-round picks.
ESPN story on trade deadline blockbuster that could push Sixers toward immediate East contention, and the Clippers toward a formidable future in the West. https://t.co/6iFO287gj0
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 6, 2019
This was a blockbuster move in every way imaginable. Tobias Harris has been playing at an extremely high level this season and was on the cusp of being an All-Star. At 20.9 points per game on splits of 49.6 percent from the field and 43.4 percent from deep, he’ll be a dangerous additional scorer to pair alongside Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler.
The 76ers have been somewhat disappointing this year as they currently find themselves at fifth place in the Eastern Conference and are in the midst of a tough schedule slate. They trail even the Victor Oladipo-less Indiana Pacers who have surged to win three straight while the Sixers have lost two consecutive. However, assuming this new aggressive uniting of players pans out, one can’t help but assume that Philly could go on a major surge.
Harris’ addition to Philadelphia’s roster could very well hinder Utah’s odds of landing him this summer in a major way. Sure, he’ll be a free agent so ultimately he can choose to go wherever he’d like, but reports indicate that the Sixers are already scheming up a way to keep their new ‘Big 4’ together this summer. He’s a close-to-max level player so he could come with a high price tag, but as the Sixers aim to be major contenders, they’ll likely view him as worth the price.
They have Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid locked down for the foreseeable future, but with Butler set to be a free agent this summer as well if he declines his player option, Philly could have their hands full keeping this core intact. But if they end the season strong, including perhaps making a trip to the NBA Finals, it would be hard to see them disbanding.
The Sixers are budgeting to re-sign and keep a new Big 4, including free agents Tobias Harris and Jimmy Butler this summer, league sources tell ESPN. Philadelphia has long-term plans for Harris, Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons together.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 6, 2019
This is a perfect example of why the Jazz may be wise to seek out the best possible trade rather than risk waiting until free agency. Even if Harris was a top and likely target in the past, this unforeseen move to Philly could change his mind immensely, and would appear to make his odds of joining the Jazz much lower, assuming there was even a chance before.
If the Sixers took the risk to trade for him for the latter part of the season, they likely feel confident that they can retain him. And Harris may be hard-pressed to pass up such an incredible opportunity to play for such a loaded team. Small market squads like the Jazz have never had the luxury of depending fully on free agency, so perhaps this will spur them to strike on a potential trade deal in order to guarantee them a chance to lock down talent long-term.
This trade is also interesting for the already loaded Western Conference. The LA Clippers have now traded away their best player at the deadline two years running. Last year it was Blake Griffin. As Wojnarowksi indicated, the Clippers obviously have lofty free agent expectations, and trading away Harris was the first move to make space for the star players they plan to pursue.
Tobias Harris could be moving toward a maximum-level contract in free agency this summer, something that would've been difficult for Clippers to do with their own free agency aspirations.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 6, 2019
It’s no secret that Kawhi Leonard is near the top of their list, but the Clippers may very well be aiming to pair a couple of max players on their roster.
LA was already trending downward in the standings, but this trade likely will result in them falling out of the playoffs altogether. You could say that’s good for the Jazz, though the hope most certainly has been that Utah could find a way in anyway. This could mean good news for a team like the Los Angeles Lakers or Sacramento Kings who currently find themselves on the outside looking in of the Western Conference playoff mix.
It will be intriguing to see what kind of domino effect this trade has and how it might affect the plans the Utah Jazz have for the remainder of trade season and upcoming free agency.