Good Radio Interview on Sirius XM with Tobias Harris.

bstein14 · Post #1 » by **bstein14** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 6:03 pm

Don't have the audio so this is mostly coming from my memory of hearing it on my car ride to work yesterday, but the make take away was that at his year end meeting Stan wants Tobias to work on
1. 3 Point Shooting, wants 37+%
2. Defense - Needs to improve lateral quickness and be a better defender.
3. Leadership - Stan said he's got to improve defensively and lead by example on the floor to become the locker room leader they need him to be.

Also, Tobias mentioned how he thought he had great chemistry with Ish Smith and that he really enjoyed starting the season with him and then later moving to the bench with Ish as well and that they are planning on putting in work together in the offseason and continuing to build that chemistry. Also said he hopes the team grows closer as a group off the court this summer because when they hit some bad stretches this year they didn't have that cohesiveness they needed to weather the storm and make things right to stop (example losing two games on the road and then being able to have each other's backs to bounce back and make sure they get don't go on a longer losing streak).

mercury · Post #2 » by **mercury** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 9:48 pm

What's puzzling is how good his first step is on offense yet on defense he can't get off the balls of his feet... his defensive awareness is atrocious. He's a smart guy with above average athleticism... something's gotta give here.
I think his best position in the future is at SF... he can create a mismatch to compensate for some of his deficiency on D.
I'd love to see a PF that is a plus defender & shooter to pair with Tobias and Dre (not buying Henry as this player).

jakebernat · Post #3 » by **jakebernat** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 9:56 pm

mercury wrote:What's puzzling is how good his first step is on offense yet on defense he can't get off the balls of his feet... his defensive awareness is atrocious. He's a smart guy with above average athleticism... something's gotta give here.
I think his best position in the future is at SF... he can create a mismatch to compensate for some of his deficiency on D.
I'd love to see a PF that is a plus defender & shooter to pair with Tobias and Dre (not buying Henry as this player).

I don't think he has as explosive as a first step as you think. He's a pretty good athlete, sure, but nowhere near elite according to NBA standards. He's just mastered the art of attacking close outs and making quick, decisive, and intelligent moves.

Post #4 » by **dVs33** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 12:19 am

I really like Harris. I hope he becomes more of a leader on the team because we don't have anything close to one now.

vic · Post #5 » by **vic** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 3:00 am

I love his mindset and i love the fact that hes comfortable with his chemistry with Ish (pass first pg). He is a smart high iq player. Even if his defense doesnt improve he will give us one of the best benches in the league.

coordinator0 · Post #6 » by **coordinator0** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 3:14 am

mercury wrote:What's puzzling is how good his first step is on offense yet on defense he can't get off the balls of his feet... his defensive awareness is atrocious. He's a smart guy with above average athleticism... something's gotta give here.
I think his best position in the future is at SF... he can create a mismatch to compensate for some of his deficiency on D.
I'd love to see a PF that is a plus defender & shooter to pair with Tobias and Dre (not buying Henry as this player).

I'd love to see a C that is a plus defender to replace Dre.

DET_Athletics · Post #7 » by **DET_Athletics** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 4:11 am

mercury wrote:What's puzzling is how good his first step is on offense yet on defense he can't get off the balls of his feet... his defensive awareness is atrocious. He's a smart guy with above average athleticism... something's gotta give here.
I think his best position in the future is at SF... he can create a mismatch to compensate for some of his deficiency on D.
I'd love to see a PF that is a plus defender & shooter to pair with Tobias and Dre (not buying Henry as this player).

Ibaka... but foreal tho has anybody really looked as his body proportions, he is built up top, but has little to no leg muscle, if he worked on all leg and core in the off-season he might be able to get into a defensive stance by the end of the year. if you watch the games, compare his defensive stance to that of stanley or KCP, he never bends the knees, like ever.

DET_Athletics · Post #8 » by **DET_Athletics** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 4:13 am

i think Stan wants to start him, but cant justify it with his lack of defense. if he start at SF we should move on from Morris and package him with leur, i know i have said Ibaka multiple times, but who else really fits the mold we need?

whitehops · Post #9 » by **whitehops** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 3:22 am

mercury wrote:What's puzzling is how good his first step is on offense yet on defense he can't get off the balls of his feet... his defensive awareness is atrocious. He's a smart guy with above average athleticism... something's gotta give here.
I think his best position in the future is at SF... he can create a mismatch to compensate for some of his deficiency on D.
I'd love to see a PF that is a plus defender & shooter to pair with Tobias and Dre (not buying Henry as this player).

as someone mentioned, his base is pretty weak and he's stiff-hipped which limits his ability to maintain a proper defensive stance and that really affects his lateral mobility. i think that is part of the reason he's better at PF since he would struggle to stay in front of opposing small forwards whereas he has a better chance to stay in front of ~6'9-6'10, ~240 lbs. power forwards.

despite his flaws (defense, passing/creating for others) i like tobias. he's easily our best scorer besides vintage reggie, he can score effectively at all three levels (from 3, mid-range and inside), is good in transition, he's mature, hard-working, etc. we have him for the next two years and he'll be only 26 at that point so he'll be creeping into his prime. it's super early but i feel like i'd like to have him on my team when he's in his prime.

Pharaoh · Post #10 » by **Pharaoh** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 4:43 am

I think Tobias is a weapon offensively that must be catered to.

Having him stand around and wait for RJ to finally dish him the rock did him no favours - no surprise he played better with Ish.

I'd like to see us use Tobias as a handler in PnR situations, where if he gets the switch he can punish bigger dudes off the bounce.

Assuming we come back with a very similar roster:

SJ & RJ start with KCP, Mook & Dre...using SJ as the secondary. PnR all day while KCP comes off curls and screens...Mook the bail out iso option as usual

Ish, ?, Harris, King/Jon, Bobo/Jon the 2nd unit where Tobias gets all the touches he can handle

Final 5:

Dre, Harris, SJ, KCP, Ish/RJ where we've got multiple handlers...

As long as our guys actually spend the time required to improve their deep shooting we'll be ok

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