Detroit Pistons player profile: Tobias Harris

Tobias Harris made an immediate impact for the Detroit Pistons after being traded from the Orlando Magic last season, and now he has the chance to take his game to another level.

Despite playing just 25 games for the Detroit Pistons last season, Tobias Harris quickly become one of the most important players for the team.

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He seemed to be on the slide with the Orlando Magic, but a mid-season trade for Ersan Ilyasova and Brandon Jennings brought him to Detroit and breathed new life into him.

Harris spent the first two games coming off the bench, but found his groove and started every game afterwards.

Tobias Harris and the Detroit Pistons seemed to be a match made in heaven. With the Magic, he averaged 13.7 points, 2 assists and 7 rebounds on 46 percent shooting from the field and 31 percent from three. After relocating to Detroit, he averaged 16.6 points, 2.6 assists and 6.2 rebounds on 48 percent shooting from the field and 38 percent from long range.

There were improvements almost entirely across the board, but he did have a drop in rebounding. Mind you, that’s understandable as Andre Drummond gobbles up rebounds for breakfast.

It’s important to remember that 25 games is a relatively small sample size, but if Harris was putting up those numbers then and seeing these improvements, how much better can he be in 2016-17 when he’s had an entire offseason to work with his new teammates?

What is even more promising is how the entire team functioned with Harris in the starting lineup.

The Pistons won 16 of the 23 games he started, including a stretch of five to help the team ensure they’d secure the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Again, this is a small sample size, but extrapolating this to a full 82-game season would have the Pistons on pace to win around 53 games.

Of course we can’t just assume the Pistons will automatically win over 50 games because of this, but the signs are incredibly positive considering Harris has spent an offseason with the team now and the bench has vastly improved.

Harris had a very up and down performance during the playoff series with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

He rebounded incredibly well, logging 10, 8, 7 and 13 rebounds, but his shot seemed to disappear on him for the first two games.

His field goal percentage was a combined 7 of 22 in the first half of the series and he made just a single three pointer.

This is in stark contrast to the next two games, where he was a combined 14 of 24 from the field and shot 43 per cent from deep.

If the Pistons get this version of Harris night in and night out they’ll have a serious threat playing at power forward.

Harris is a credible shooter from deep, so opposition players will have to respect him. That will help greatly with floor spacing, while he’s not afraid to crash the boards and is an underrated passer.

He can also be active on the defensive end with steals and blocks, although his overall defensive game still needs quite a bit of work.

The Pistons are poised for a breakout season, and so is Tobias Harris if he can play to his potential.

Next: Eight predictions for the Detroit Pistons' season in 2016-17

He’s the prototypical power forward for today’s NBA, making him one of the most valuable assets on the team.

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