Like most everyone affiliated with the Philadelphia 76ers, owner Josh Harris was thrilled after Jimmy Butler did what Jimmy Butler was brought to town to do and drilled a game-winning, sidestep 3-pointer at Barclays Center in late November. But as his rookie general manager Elton Brand approached, hand raised for an expected high-five, Harris quickly learned that, when it comes to excitement, there are levels to this — and he wasn’t ready for what came next.



“I think the high-five that he gave me after we beat the Nets spun me around three times,” Harris recently said with a laugh. “He’s a bit bigger than me.”



By the time Harris stopped spinning, he understood the passion underneath those finely-tailored Italian suits, the competitiveness that fueled a 17-year playing career and the fire inside the quiet demeanor that led to this unique moment in franchise history. The 76ers’ once gruesome, years-long rebuild has now...