Bin Simmons it has marked the preseason of some Sixers who have chosen to isolate themselves from the media noise around them. It is the only way they have to reach the marked objective: the ring. A jewel that resists them but for which according to Tobias Harris they are as favorite as the most. The forward attends MARCA with FootLocker as a witness to a talk about basketball, mental health and racial equality.
- He begins his third full season with the Philadelphia 76ers after joining the team in February 2018. What are your feelings before starting this campaign that is about to raise the curtain?
- I am very nervous and expectant. When you look at the team we have, the players on the squad, where we were last season and the progress we’ve made as a team, I think it’s exciting. We have to make improvements, of course, but I think as a group we have managed to focus on that progress and be ready for the campaign. We are all focused, on the same page and ready for anything. It’s going to be an amazing season and I can’t wait to get started.
- What improvements did the Sixers need to get one more step up from last season?
- I think we had to take one more step on defense, close up and focus on closing our basket. Then in attack we already have a style, a way of playing, constantly moving the ball, so what we had to focus on is the execution of these movements and the finish. That was the great goal. I think that we have to improve on that from last season, execute and be smarter at key moments in the games and I think we have managed to make progress in that regard.
Lakers and Nets are not the only favorites, we too will be there in the end
- Do you feel like last season, after a great regular league, they missed their big shot at going for the ring?
- It was very hard. We had the opportunity, but it is part of life and the game in the NBA. Now what we have to do and what we have to be capable of is to get up and go back to racing. Since I’ve been here we have always done a good job compared to the previous season. We got swept into the Orlando bubble, we got up and we were the best team in the East in the regular season, so we know how to do it. We have to be really focused to get more.
- And what has been the work in this preseason to be ready for this new challenge? What is the mentality of the team?
- It has been a great preseason and I think the team is ready for everything. We had many doubts when we got to the first training sessions, but we have discovered how we want to play and we are ready for everything. The truth is that it has been a really positive preseason.
- In a preseason marked by the noise generated by the controversy with Ben Simmons, has it been difficult to focus only on basketball?
- No, not necessarily. When we jump onto the court and start playing, it’s the only thing that matters to us. I think the way I see it is how the rest of the group has seen it, we have removed our doubts and we have been focused on the things that we can control.
- What’s it like working for a coach like Doc Rivers?
- It’s great. I already knew him from my time with the Clippers. He knows me and knows how I play and I know what his training style is like. He is also a great person off the court and beyond his dimension as a basketball coach. We have a very good feeling about his way of leading this group and making it work and also when it comes to knowing what he wants from me as a player and as one of the leaders of this team.
- And share a wardrobe with a figure like Joel Embiid?
- He is a huge player. You just have to look at last season, which was at the MVP level. I hope this course is able to perform at the same level and do the same. I hope that he will even improve even more, but above all that he will be able to do what is necessary for this team to win. He is a dominant player and one of the most dynamic inside players in the sport. Being on the same team as him is an incredible experience.
From Pau Gasol I keep his ability on the court. He was a great basketball player “
- They have a dominant inside player like Embiid, good shooters like Seth Curry or Danny Green, multipurpose players on both sides of the court like you, what pieces do the Sixers need to reach the next level?
- I think what we need is chemistry and a team with players who continue to grow in their game as we have been doing.
- Everyone (press, bookmakers, GMs of the franchises …) favorites the Lakers and Nets for this season. Where do you see the Sixers this season?
- I do not agree with those favorites. We too will be there at the end of the season and we are also favorites.
- And do you still see the Nets as one of the big favorites after all that is happening with Kyrie Irving, now removed from the team? What do you think of everything that is happening?
- I think Brooklyn is still a very talented team and they will be at the top. Sure.
- The NBA turns 75 this season and among the commemorative acts will be choosing the 75 best players in history. What will your top 5 be?
- It is difficult to answer that. If I have to do it in order it would be: Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain.
- And among the current players, what will be the top 5?
- I don’t know. I think, for example, that Kevin Durant is the toughest player to defend in the entire league, but the rest is hard to say.
- And which of all has been your greatest inspiration as a child?
- Michael Jordan. Without a doubt.
IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL PROGRAMS
Beyond his work on the court, Harris is very active in helping his community. Above all to promote racial equality and to give opportunities to all through basketball. That is why he considers programs such as ‘Raise the Game’ “very important”, which with Foot Locker has been created as a program to support the basketball community with projects such as the renovation of a mythical court in Barcelona such as that of Poblenou.
- As you grew up watching Jordan’s videos and hanging his photos in his room, did you come to believe that he would play in the NBA and that he would do it at the level that he is doing?
- He had many dreams and among them was that all this was going to happen. Now seeing where I come from and where I am is a great feeling.
- Among the players who are called to reign in the future is Luka Doncic. Do you see him as the next alpha male in the NBA?
- No, I don’t see him as the next alpha male because he is already an alpha male in the NBA. Luka is very tough. He’s a superstar already. His game is years ahead of what it probably should be and what many people thought it was going to be.
- Just a couple of weeks ago Pau Gasol announced his retirement, what memories do you have of your matches against the Spanish player?
- How skilled he was on the court. Its quality. He is a tremendous basketball player. He was a very difficult opponent to beat.
- One of the most important parts of the preparation of teams and players in recent times is the care and attention to mental health, something that you have pointed out on more than one occasion. How do you take care of yourself?
- All I’m trying is spending time with myself, listening to myself at the end of the day. I like to sit still, meditate, read … make sure I take care of myself both physically and mentally. Taking care of the soul is also a very important part as is having healthy habits like nutrition. What I try is to be good with myself, turn off the phone, disconnect from the outside world and be able to relax. It is one of the best things I have been able to do.
- One of the images from 2021 is that of Simone Biles resigning to participate in some tests of the Games because of pressure. How does an elite athlete handle that pressure?
- Taking care of mental health. I believe to know how to carry that part of the sport is very important to be in the present, not anticipate anything and be relaxed. It’s key. Each person does it in a different way and I could never speak on behalf of another person in that regard, but for me, when I have that pressure, what I try is to flow and not put too much pressure on different situations and let things happen. the way they’re supposed to happen.
- Have you ever felt that way, wanting to break with everything because of the pressure?
- No, it hasn’t happened to me so far. But I do know that I have ever felt that we forget that athletes are human beings and not robots. These are the times when I need to focus the most and when I need more clarity to understand who I am, why I am doing what I am doing, and how to improve myself at different times. It’s one of those things that pressure from fans or the media has helped me understand.
I don’t know if there is much left or not, but I do know that there is still work to be done on the issue of racial equality. “
- Another of his struggles is racial equality. October is Black History Month and you have a great inspirational story with your grandfather who was something of a pioneer during WWII. How important is your figure to you?
- My grandfather was part of the Tuskegee Airmen. A group that fought against racial inequality in the air forces and that participated in World War II as an escort in the bombardments of enemy points in Germany and Italy. It was a great motivation and it has given me great strength to be successful in the world with all that it has taught me. He is a model for me and a true inspiration for everyone.
- Do you feel that there is still a lot of work to be done to achieve equality?
- I don’t know if there is much left or not, but I do know that there is work ahead.