Tobias Harris had been cast as the Sixers’ third star. What role does he play now?

CHARLESTON, S.C. — One could argue that Tobias Harris has turned into the 76ers’ undervalued star.

Two seasons ago, he, Joel Embiid, and Ben Simmons formed the team’s Big Three.

These days, Simmons is a Brooklyn Net and arguably the most despised former Sixer. Embiid is a two-time MVP runner-up, and Harris has dropped to the Sixers’ fourth-best player in the eyes of many.

Now some are saying that perennial All-Star James Harden and third-year guard Tyrese Maxey have supplanted Harris in the star quality pecking order. As a result, those people view Embiid, Harden, and Maxey as the new Big Three.

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And Harris says he couldn’t care less. He’s focused helping the Sixers win a title — not being labeled.

“I know basketball and a perspective that many people don’t look at: Big Threes in the NBA are long gone,” Harris told The Inquirer Thursday after training camp practice at The Citadel. “Big Threes were in the era of LeBron [James], [Dwyane] Wade, and Chris Bosh [on the Miami Heat’s 2012 and 2013 champions], and K.G [Kevin Garnett], Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce [on the 2008 Boston Celtics title team].

“I guarantee you if you ask all those people who’s the Golden State Warriors’ Big Three, they wouldn’t even have the guys that were the most important on their championship team.”

If the Sixers do win a title, one could argue that Harris has to play a vital role. And things are set up for him to do that after the free-agent acquisition of three-and-D forward P.J. Tucker.

That was an unfamiliar role for Harris after the Sixers acquired Harden via a trade from the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 10.

Before Harden’s Sixers debut on Feb. 25, Harris had a large portion of the offense run through him.

But for a while after Harden’s debut, most of Harris’ touches came off catch-and-shoot scenarios. As a result, Harris initially played out of rhythm and looked lost during stretches. He found his groove toward the end of the season and was one of their more effective two-way players in the playoffs.

This season, Tucker will be looked on to provide corner three-point shooting and guard the better forward. That frees up things for Harris to play a more natural role. He’s at this best while shooting open shots and making quick decisions. Harris is also one of the unquestioned leaders of the Sixers, one who leads by example.

So Sixers coach Doc Rivers expects him to play at his best while bringing a positive attitude and defending his tail off.

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“You’ve got to understand, we’ve got a lot of guys on this team who are scorers, who can put the ball in the basket,” Harris said. “And it’s going to be different guys every night. So we’ve got to understand that as a whole collective group.

“The better we are to play as one unit, the better everybody is going to play on this court.”

But based on his accomplishments, Harris might be one of the most underappreciated Sixers. Folks point to his having two years and $76.9 million remaining on the five-year, $180 million deal that he signed on July 10, 2019.

His salary of $37.6 million for this season is the highest on the team, $4 million more than Embiid and $4.6 million more than three-time scoring champion Harden, who took less by opting out of his contract. After subpar games, Harris’ critics are bound to flood social media with posts about his being overpaid.

However, he averaged 19.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists and shot 48.7% from the field — including 38.1% on three-pointers — and 85.3% from the foul line over the last four seasons. Nets star Kevin Durant, Hall of Famer Larry Bird, and future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki are the only players to match or exceed Harris’ average production and efficiency over a four-year span.

He averaged 17.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists while shooting 48.2% — including 36.7% on threes — and 84.2% from the foul line last season. Durant was the league’s only other player to match or exceed his numbers.

But some have undervalued him. It could be because they don’t necessary pay close attention to how the Sixers play. Everything goes through Embiid. Harden is a ball-dominant player and Maxey is a bucket maker in the open court.

“There’s only one basketball,” Harris said. “We have to find a balance of flow. Sometimes I’m that guy to make that sacrifice. It might be disappointing for people throwing out bets on points.

“But at the end of the day, do you want wins? Or do you want us to be our best team? We are not a losing team. We have to play winning basketball.”