Los Angeles Clippers Agree To Trade Tobias Harris To Philadelphia 76ers In Six-Player Deal, Per ‘ESPN’
With the clock ticking as the NBA draws closer to its Thursday trade deadline, the Los Angeles Clippers agreed to trade starting forward Tobias Harris to the Philadelphia 76ers, according to a new report from ESPN.
The news of the trade broke early on Wednesday morning, as ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski cited league sources in breaking down the details of the trade, which would allow Harris to join a Sixers lineup that already includes young superstars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, All-Star forward/guard Jimmy Butler, and veteran sharpshooter J.J. Redick. As noted by Clips Nation, the trade was reported not long after the Athletic‘s Shams Charania discussed it in concept in a separate piece.
According to Wojnarowski, the Clippers will also be sending center Boban Marjanovic and forward Mike Scott to the Philadelphia, while the Sixers will be giving up rookie guard Landry Shamet, veteran forwards Wilson Chandler and Mike Muscala, their 2020 first-round pick, an unprotected 2021 first-round pick (via the Miami Heat), and their second-round picks in the 2021 and 2023 NBA Drafts.
The move to Philadelphia will mark the fifth time that Tobias Harris has been traded since he was picked 19th overall by the Charlotte Bobcats in the 2011 NBA Draft. After the Bobcats traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks on draft night, he had stints with the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons before the latter team traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers midway through the 2017-18 season.
Likewise, Clips Nation also pointed out that the new trade marks the second time in a row that Harris and Marjanovic were part of the same trade package.
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
Although Harris was enjoying a productive season for the Clippers, having posted averages of 20.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.7 assists at the time of the trade, Clips Nation further explained that the team likely traded him so that they could afford the two top-tier free agents they plan to sign in the 2019 offseason.
“[The Clippers will] take on very little future salary as both Chandler and Muscala are on expiring contracts and Shamet will be making less than $2 million in the second year of his rookie contract,” Clips Nation added.
Meanwhile, Harris will be expected to shore up the Philadelphia 76ers’ weakness at power forward, as his predecessor at the position, the Clippers-bound Wilson Chandler, averaged just 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds while starting 32 out of 36 games for Philadelphia. Interestingly, Harris’ name was mentioned in the Sixer Sense‘s recent list of potential power forward acquisitions, though the Fansided blog proposed a vastly different trade package that, in part, would have sent struggling former first overall draft pick Markelle Fultz to Los Angeles.
