Tobias Harris rejoins Pistons to help 'turn this thing around'

Tobias Harris first came to Detroit at the age of 24, in his fifth NBA season. A blossoming scorer, he helped the Pistons end a long era of losing. He returns aiming to do the same thing at the age of 32, only in a different role in season 14.

"Be the best leader that I can be for this group and to make sure that every guy on this team reaches their potential and their ability. That’s the biggest goal for me," Harris said Tuesday on NBA TV while taking in a Pistons Summer League game.

Wanting to surround their young players with proven vets, the Pistons signed Harris to a two-year, $52 million deal in free agency. It was the team's first big move under new president of basketball ops Trajan Langdon, who also added Tim Hardaway Jr. and Malik Beasley. Harris is a respected shooter who should aid the Pistons' spacing around Cade Cunningham and a cast of other lottery picks.

For Harris, the appeal of returning to the Pistons was "just being a part of something special," he said. His first stint in Detroit came from 2016-18 and featured the team's only winning season in the last 16 years, before he was sent to the Clippers as part of the Blake Griffin trade.

"Detroit always had a place in my heart from the time that I was there originally," Harris said. "I met my wife in Detroit, that’s where she’s from. For me, it was an opportunity to be part of a young group that's taking the right steps in the right direction to really turn this thing around. And that meant a lot for me. I was excited for a new chapter.”

The Pistons are desperate for one. Most of their recent steps have been backward. They're coming off the worst season in franchise history, the nadir of a five-year stretch where they've lost the most games in the NBA -- 290, to be exact. Harris, meanwhile, is coming off six winning seasons with the 76ers. The Pistons are hoping that rubs off on his new teammates.

Asked what it will take for Detroit to return to its winning ways, Harris said, "It's our daily habits -- with the new staff, with the young talent we have, and more importantly, with the characteristics of the guys that we have."

"I’ve just been around for a few days and just seeing the work ethic and the eagerness to learn is huge," he said. "For me, it’s just to come in, be a vet voice for all these guys on and off the floor and conduct ourselves as professionals. And give our fans, our passionate fans, a show every single night we step on the floor.”

Langdon and the Pistons consider Harris a key part of their path forward the next two seasons. The losing must stop for the winning to ever resume. A young player when he first joined the Pistons, Harris returns to help their young players prosper.

“Going into year 14, I’ve had a lot of experience in this league and one of the most satisfying things is seeing the youth come up," he said. "And for us, it’s just to figure out how good we can be as a group and have the best type of team chemistry and team flow for us."