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“Leadership”: Fans Hail Tobias Harris For Heartwarming Stand on Ben Simmons

Published 10/22/2021, 4:53 PM EDT

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The Ben Simmons trade saga has intrigued the league for months now. While his talent was visible ever since his draft, one of the biggest caveats was that he was a not a modern day guard who had a game based on the perimeter.

This aspect certainly became a big problem alongside a traditional center like Joel Embiid. Embiid, who like Hakeem Olajuwon, relies on his dominance and his post-up play is one of the best players in the restricted area.

Given how both the players had similar areas where they like to dominate, one of them had to step back. Simmons was the one who sacrificed, and we never saw the offensive plays by the guard. This certainly hurt the 76ers in the playoffs as Simmons could not guard a shifty guard like Trae Young and his lack of offense meant that the series slipped away from Philly’s hands.

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USA Today via Reuters

The criticism was massive as well. From Embiid to Doc Rivers, everyone criticised and the guards and to make matters worse, fans were furious. Given all of these factors, Simmons’ trade looked imminent.

Tobias Harris supports Ben Simmons’ latest revelation

Ever since the off-season, the Simmons trade saga has taken multiple turns. Be it the Australian not showing up in pre-season and training camp to his recent fallout in a training session, the future of Ben Simmons remains uncertain.

But the latest development has seriously shifted the possibility of a trade down the rabbit hole. Simmons recently opened up and said that he and his teammates need to be responsible but also acknowledged that he is mentally not ready to return just yet.

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Teammate Tobias Harris certainly was in full support of the 3-time All-Star. In a recent tweet, Harris said that the team will respect his privacy and will embrace him with open arms.

This is certainly an incredible show of respect for by the Sixers’ forward. Given how rampant the media space has been, seeing a teammate speaking out for Simmons is massive. While the likes of Embiid haven’t been as supportive, Harris’ comments suggest that a return to Philly might not be that hard after all.

Twitter lauds Tobias Harris’ recent comments

NBA twitter certainly was appreciative of the tweet Harris made. Given how he supported Simmons’ who hasn’t had the best of days, many hailed him as a leader of for the team.

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Simmons will certainly be encouraged to see one of his teammates step up for him. Given how torrid these past few weeks have been, Harris might play a key role for the All-Star guard’s comeback. Do you think Simmons will finally return for the 76ers? Let us know in the comments section down below.

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Written by:

Aditya Mohapatra

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Aditya Mohapatra is a sports enthusiast who primarily covers the NBA for EssentiallySports. Having graduated in Mass Communication, he has prior experience in writing for ABP News, and has been writing for EssentiallySports since November 2020. This die-hard Los Angeles Lakers fan feels that LeBron James is the best thing to have ever happened to the NBA, and will hold a healthy debate with anyone suggesting otherwise.
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