LI's Tobias Harris keeps improving for Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks' Tobias Harris in action in the first half against the Philadelphia 76ers. (Nov. 12, 2012) Credit: AP
Second-year Milwaukee Bucks forward Tobias Harris expects to have a host of family members in Dix Hills watching him Wednesday night as he starts against the Knicks -- his favorite team growing up.
Harris, 20, starred at Half Hollow Hills West and Long Island Lutheran before spending a year at the University of Tennessee.
He is improving in his second year as an NBA player. Harris heads into Wednesday night having started all 12 games for the 7-5 Bucks. He was averaging 8.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 19.0 minutes.
“How hard he plays and the edge he has, he’s a Scott Skiles type of player,” said Knicks forward Steve Novak. “You can tell that he’s kind of come into his own. I think he has a lot of confidence, whereas I think maybe last year he wasn’t quite as sure exactly what he was supposed to be doing or where he was supposed to be. Now I think he knows, and you can see that.”
Harris’ rookie season was delayed by the NBA lockout and a bout with dehydration during the truncated training camp that landed him in the hospital. Still, he started nine of his 42 games.
“I feel a lot more comfortable,” Harris said. “Last year I had the dehydration issue during training camp, so that really hurt me, set me back some. To have a full one this year, to be healthy now, is a good feeling.”
Of playing against the Knicks, Harris said: “To be a kid, watching the Knicks play a lot, and then to be able to go against them now, it does mean a lot.”
