Tobias Harris Says Ben Simmons "Wasn't Confident" Shooting the Ball in 2019, is "Working His Tail Off" to Improve
Sixers forward Tobias Harris, who got himself a sweet five-year, $180 million deal this summer, went on First Things First this morning with Cris Carter and Nick Wright.
The conversation touched on a variety of things, but most notable was the nugget Harris dropped about Ben Simmons’ jump shot, which Tobias brought up when mentioning that Carter has been critical in the past.
Video clip after the jump:
"You're always on my mans jump shot, but I was with him in the gym in LA, and he's shooting the ball. He's confident with it. He's working."
— @tobias31 on Ben Simmons pic.twitter.com/JbhFWmjqEW
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) July 29, 2019
Here’s the relevant part of the exchange:
Harris: Ben I was just out in LA with him training, he’s in the gym working. You’re always on my man’s jump shot, but –
Carter: Absolutely. Can we talk about that?
Harris: We can. Yeah, why not? I was with him in the gym in LA and he’s shooting it and he’s confident with it. For me, that’s all I like to see from him. He’s working. He’s working his tail off every single day getting better. We have the right pieces and the right group with the right mindset, in my opinion, that this time is coming back with a chip on our shoulder to really make something happen.
Jenna Wolfe: We talked a lot about his seeming lack of confidence, in taking that shot, taking that shot during the game. You’re out there on the court playing with him. I don’t want to use the word “frustrate,” but is there a question mark that comes up, you know ‘you’re talented, you’re one of the best in the league, why not make more of an effort to try to take those shots?’
Harris: Well, at that time last year for him, he just wasn’t confident in shooting it, but still super productive. He’s like a deer in the front court of just running and getting out and running in transition. He can get to the rim at will. He’s stronger and can post up, etcetera. For him to add that element now, where teams have to defend that and guard that and just know that he’s going to be able to shoot, improves us as a whole group. That’s gonna really help us for sure.
Nothing we didn’t already know, but it’s nice to hear it from a teammate, more confirmation that Ben just needs to step up and start firing away to get over the hump. If Ben Simmons without a jump shot is an All-Star, then Ben Simmons with a jump shot is what? Approaching all-NBA type of status? Hopefully Sixers fans will find out.