76ers vs. Cavs: What Happened to Tobias Harris?

Tobias Harris was ruled out for the rest of Wednesday's game in the third quarter.

Wednesday night’s matchup in Cleveland didn’t go the way the Philadelphia 76ers would like to have imagined. After wrapping up a back-to-back set of games, with one on the road in Orlando, and the other at home against Atlanta, the Sixers had one day off before facing the thriving Cavaliers.

The first quarter of action was close for the Sixers as they trailed by just four points. The second quarter, however, was tough to watch for the visiting team.

Cleveland outscored the Sixers 44-27 in the first half of action. Trailing by over 20 points at halftime, the Sixers didn’t have much room for error in the second half. Through the first few minutes of the third quarter, it was apparent the Sixers weren’t going to form a comeback, as they trailed by as many as 32 points before the fourth quarter.

Sixers head coach Doc Rivers wanted to tinker with lineups and allow everybody who was active on the bench to play. While some players went out for the remainder of the game to gain some rest, the veteran forward Tobias Harris was ruled out in the second half due to an illness, according to a Sixers official.

When asked about Harris’s illness after the matchup, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers wasn’t sure about what his starting forward was dealing with, as Harris attempted to play through the illness without signaling he was less than one hundred percent health-wise.

“I don’t know,” said Rivers. “He kind of didn’t want to say anything. I found out in the middle of the game. So, right when I found out, I took him out and told him to go back. We weren’t going to win the game, why have him on the floor?”

Knowing Harris was feeling ill added some clarity to his tough performance on Wednesday. In 23 minutes of action, Harris attempted seven shots from the field. None of his field goal attempts were successful, and he only scored after knocking down three free throws.

Harris and the Sixers will get Thursday off before they take on the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. Considering Rivers remained unclear about how Harris was feeling after Wednesday’s game, Harris’ status for Friday isn’t clear at the moment. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.