DENVER — There isn’t much about NBA life that is unfamiliar to Devin Harris after nearly 14 seasons in the league. The 34-year-old has been a 20-points-per-game scorer, an All Star, played in an NBA Finals and, in the last few seasons, come off the bench for a lottery team.
But one scenario Harris hadn’t witnessed until Saturday night, which was his first game in a Nuggets’ uniform, was an altercation that started because of inflammatory comments a player made on a podcast. The Suns’ Troy Daniels and Nuggets swingman Will Barton nearly came to blows after Barton joked on the Road Trippin’ Podcast that Phoenix players should be sent down to the G League after suffering a 48-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
“I’ve heard of Twitter beef,” Harris said. “I’ve never heard of podcast beef. We’re evolving.”
Harris was brought in to act as a steady hand at backup point guard. On Saturday, he was thrown into the fire right away. He scored nine points, collected two steals and finished as a plus-17 in 22 minutes in a win over the Suns. It was the type of performance the Nuggets envisioned when they made a move for him at the trade deadline Thursday.
“I think as our young core progressed, Jamal, Gary and Nikola in particular, we thought it made more sense to have a veteran guy behind some of the young guys,” Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said. “Devin’s experience, his versatility on both ends of the floor I think will be helpful. I thought he played very well in Phoenix. Hopefully, it’s a win-win for both us and the Knicks.”
The three-team deal Connelly helped facilitate gave Emmanuel Mudiay a fresh start in New York and improved his own team’s odds at snapping a five-year playoff drought. Harris, a battle-tested veteran who’s played in 64 career playoff games, was one of the best options available on the backup point guard market. He was also a player who welcomed the opportunity to move to a team that’s in the thick of the playoff race.
“It’s an exciting time for me,” Harris said. “It’s a team making a playoff push. I was on a team headed to the lottery. As you get older and the time’s ticking on your career, you want to play as much meaningful basketball as you can. Being here and being with these young guys is exciting.”
Harris knew plenty about the situation he was stepping into. The Mavericks and Nuggets already faced each other three times before the trade. Plus, Harris previously played with Richard Jefferson in New Jersey and Dallas and Paul Millsap in Utah.
“I knew (Nikola) Jokic could pass,” he said. “I knew R.J. (Richard Jefferson) is R.J. Gary (Harris) is a solid young player. Jamal (Murray) is a great young player.”
The Nuggets are hopeful Harris can pass along some of what he’s seen and heard in his career to the young guns on the roster while he’s here. The next few months are are an opportunity for Jamal Murray and Gary Harris, the two members of Denver’s promising starting backcourt, to soak up as much as they can from a guard who’s already accomplished so much — that is after they work past the confusion of two players who share the same last name.
“It takes some getting used to, not being the only Harris,” the elder Harris said. “There was a situation out there on the floor where it was like, ‘Harris you take him.’ I looked at him. He looked at me. And I was like, ‘No, you take him.'”
