How Joe Harris' shooting can help Brooklyn Nets in the absence of Kyrie Irving for the 2021-22 NBA season
Joe Harris is an important player for the Brooklyn Nets. In the absence of Kyrie Irving, Joe Harris will be asked to do more -- like everyone on the Brooklyn Nets' roster. Joe Harris is a born shooter and that is his entire job for the Brooklyn Nets.
Not having the pressure to fill the stat sheet nightly for one of the NBA's most talked about teams has to be a luxury, yet with that luxury comes tremendous expectation.
Players like Joe Harris can't miss, and he's almost like an NFL kicker in that regard. He is expected to make every shot, and given his shooting percentage from behind the arc, Brooklyn Nets fans should not expect any less beyond reason.
His shot is almost like therapy; it's a comfort that Steve Nash will rely on when his three-pointers stop runs by the opposition. That reliance could make this a special season for Joe Harris. Let's examine why.
"Chicago" action — which pairs a pindown screen (from James Harden, interesting!) for Joe Harris, who then sprints into a dribble handoff with Nicolas Claxton — has replaced Brooklyn's "Scissors" play as the set that the Nets seem to like open games with. https://t.co/8l3C9wuqp3
The Brooklyn Nets
The Kyrie Irving saga continues without him suiting up for the Brooklyn Nets, and deleting Irving's contributions will be a sigh of relief for whoever the Brooklyn Nets play this season. Steve Nash will have his hands full as he seeks to put the Brooklyn Nets in a position everyone expects them to be in -- the NBA Finals.
It's funny how expectations are either a gift or a curse, yet with the Brooklyn Nets, players have to focus on the goal and not what fans and media expect of them.
James Harden and Kevin Durant
The pressure to win in pro sports is something superstars understand comes with territory, and as James Harden and Kevin Durant handle that pressure will dictate just how much the Brooklyn Nets miss Kyrie Irving.
It's absurd to think the Brooklyn Nets are better off without an arguable future Hall of Fame point guard on the floor, yet the Brooklyn Nets seem to have taken the right approach of focusing on who will be on the floor.
Durant seems to relish the opportunity to do more, and Harden is his usual nonchalant self when addressing perceived pressure. James Harden and Kevin Durant will most likely up their statistics across the board not because they want to, but because they have to.
Intangibles and such
The longest tenured Brooklyn Nets player, Joe Harris trails only Hall of Famer Jason Kidd in the Brooklyn Nets' career three-pointers made. He was a 4-year starter at UV, and is the leader in games played (135) and is 2nd in three-point percentage (40.7%) and makes with 263.
Drafted by a Cavs team at the bottom of the league in almost everything, landing the Brooklyn Nets at such an exciting time for the franchise with one job to do has to be plush. He knows the culture within Barclays and has said it's why the team was able to land its bevy of current and past superstars.
Joe Harris says there was a perception "across the league that we had the best culture," and that's how the Nets landed Kyrie & KD (and now Harden, Griffin, Aldridge, etc). Says "the culture has stayed the same" but the talent has just improved.
Joe Harris' role
Shooting 48% from deep for an entire season is a special feat. Joe Harris led the NBA in three-point shooting, and has shot 40% or better for each of his seasons with the Brooklyn Nets except in 2016-17 -- his first with the team.
The 33rd pick in the 2014 NBA Draft out of the University of Virginia is a 6'6" wunderkind of a shooter. He is extremely deadly, and with all the furious attention James Harden and Kevin Durant will command Joe Harris will have every opportunity to perform as expected.
The Brooklyn Nets were +4.9 with Joe Harris on the floor vs. off, according to Cleaning the Glass, so the value of having Joe Harris on the floor is measurable.
Joey Buckets knocked down 7 threes tonight 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/ji4KTYGEmz
2021-22
Look, Joe Harris may be the most underrated shooter in the NBA. It would be interesting to see how effective he would be on a young team with more of a scoring burden. Watching games last season and the most recent pre-season game where he hit 7 from deep, his jumper is just so pure. It is a shock when he misses.
Not being hyperbolic in any sense, yet there simply aren't many other shooters in the NBA I'd take over Joe Harris. His height suggests he has an advantage over smaller defenders simply because of the angle he lets it fly.
If you are imagining Joe Harris as a true third scorer for the Brooklyn Nets this season, you could be correct. Regardless of dreaming of sugar plumbs, the reality is Joe Harris' year will be a surprising one.