Tobias Harris is poised to cash in as a free agent this summer, but where will he end up?
When the Philadelphia 76ers traded for Tobias Harris in February, they did so knowing he was headed for a massive payday this summer.
They also knew plenty of other teams would seek to secure his services.
In March, Shams Charania of The Athletic wrote that executives around the league “believe several other teams,” including the Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks and Brooklyn Nets, would “also provide competition for Harris.” Two months later, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported the Mavericks, Jazz, Nets, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers “are among the teams that will go after” Harris in free agency.
The Sixers can offer Harris a five-year max contract worth a projected $189.7 million, whereas other suitors are limited to a four-year deal topping out at $140.6 million. According to Pompey, the Sixers will “mostly likely have to offer the five-year maximum for him to stay.”
Will the Sixers pony up and overpay Harris to keep him around? Or will the threat of a massive luxury-tax bill in 2020-21 cause them to balk at giving him a five-year max, opening the door for another suitor to steal him away from Philadelphia?
Based on need, salary-cap space and recent reporting, the following five teams stand out as Harris’ most likely free-agent landing spots this summer.