DETROIT — When Nick Nurse took over the head coaching position for the Philadelphia 76ers, he already had an idea of what he was walking into. He knew about Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris from the matchups Nurse’s Toronto Raptors had with the Sixers.
However, now that he is the head man in Philadelphia, he has been able to see these guys up close, and he is learning more about them every day.
Harris, for example, continues to show his versatility and his work ethic. He’s averaging 16.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 51.8% from the floor and doing whatever is asked of him.
“What’s stood out to me is I think, again, his willingness to do — he is willing to understand all the little facets — I keep saying it like he can do a lot of different things, right?” Nurse stated of Harris. “I’m not talking about him shooting the 3, driving the ball, posting up, whatever, he can do a little bit of everything. He can bring it, rebound it, defend multiple positions, all that kind of stuff, and I think what stands out to me is he’s very much in tune with that he is versatile and in tune with being a team player, right?”
Even on nights Harris isn’t getting many shots or he isn’t contributing with his scoring, he is finding other ways to help the Sixers win. That is something Nurse appreciates.
“He’s like everybody else,” Nurse added. “He wants to get his fair share of touches and shots and buckets and all those things, too, but he’s in there battling, doing all the little things even on some of the nights when the ball doesn’t seem to find him quite as often, and again, really mature, really professional.”
It’s that professionalism that has helped Harris throughout his career. Not just in Philadelphia, but in other stops along the way. It’s obvious he understands what’s needed of him and he brings it on a nightly basis for this group.
“It’s super easy to have a conversation with him about keep doing this, this, this, and I know it didn’t find you tonight, the ball didn’t find you much, and whatever or they did this game plan-wise and we didn’t adjust to it very well to help you or whatever,” Nurse finished. “Those are conversations that, again, with his maturity and professionalism, they’re easy to have.”
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