Getty Brooklyn's James Harden, Joe Harris and Kevin Durant talk during a stop in play in the first half against the Milwaukee Bucks during Game 7 of the Eastern Conference second round at Barclays Center on June 19, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
Joe Harris was a steady, reliable starter for the Nets over the past three seasons, averaging 14.1 points per game over that span while twice leading the NBA in three-point percentage.
Yet by the end of the night Thursday, one Nets fan had taken to Twitter to share a video wherein a jersey of Harris is lit on fire.
Nets fan burning Joe Harris’ jersey 😬
(Via anthony.chersevani )
Such is the fallout of a severely underwhelming postseason performance.
Harris shot a franchise-record 47.5 percent from 3-point range during the 2020-21 regular season, but saw that number dip to 32.7 percent during Brooklyn’s second-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks, who used a 115-111 win in Game 7 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. Harris’ shooting percentage from the field (34.7 percent) was nearly as bad.
So while burning Harris’ jersey might have been an overreaction, exploring trade options for him this offseason seems reasonable — if not expected, as one NBA legend described the situation.
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Magic Johnson Thinks Nets Should Trade Joe Harris
On Monday’s edition of Get Up on ESPN, Lakers legend Magic Johnson detailed what he thought the Nets should do with Harris. Put simply, he thinks Harris needs to be used in a trade that brings back the Nets a two-way talent, with more of an emphasis on defense.
Here’s Magic’s full quote on Harris:
I think they got to get a better supporting cast for them to win the championship. I think Joe Harris, they should use him as a trade piece to bring in somebody. They need guys who can play both ends of the court and guys who can actually give them extra possessions. So they going to have to get the role players to be a little bit better if they’re going to win the championship because everybody’s going to build over the summer to beat them. And let’s say Milwaukee wins it all. That’s going to give them the confidence to go up against Brooklyn next season as well. They already beat them this season but it’ll give them the confidence to beat them next season. So I think they got to improve.
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Nets GM Weighs in on Harris Situation
Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks saw how valuable Harris and his skill set could be for the Nets, prompting him to sign the 29-year-old sharpshooter to a four-year, $75 million contract ($72 million guaranteed) last offseason.
But on Monday, Marks was fielding questions about his Harris’ struggles.
“I think we have to be careful at ‘what you have done for me lately?’” Marks said, via Nets Daily. “Joe has been a stronghold here for the entire time I’ve been here. I’ve watched him grow. I’ve watched him develop. He’s a huge part of this culture and driving it. We owe a lot of that to who Joe is as a person both on and off the court.
“Am I disappointed? For sure. But I can not be more disappointed in Joe than he’s already in himself. I know that. He’s taking this tough and difficult and hard and I know he’ll be back to being Joe and shooting lights out that he’s always has been for us.”
As for Harris’ future with the team? Marks wouldn’t say.
“In terms of his future on the team, there’s really no comment on that,” the Nets GM said. “Joe is a Brooklyn Net and until otherwise whether that’s his decision or mine, we want to focus on that. We 100 percent support Joe and we’ll be here for him. I expect Joe to bounce back and be the elite three-point shooter that he’s shown for a long time.”
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