Shaq Harrison loves Chipotle, music and just wants to do "the dirty work"

Shaq Harrison has been a Denver resident for only three weeks. He’s still getting his bearings, finding out what local restaurants will be his go-to’s, and learning how to avoid I-25 at all hours of the day.

But Harrison has spent a substantial amount of time at one local establishment that’s familiar to him: Chipotle.

“I always find a Chipotle everywhere I go,” Harrison told DNVR. “I probably eat there legit three times per week. I get bowls, burritos, quesadillas. My usual order is chicken, white rice, corn, some of the hot and a lot of sour cream. If you know me, you know I love sour cream.”

Harrison’s Chipotle addiction is perfectly normal. He and I share that same vice. His road to Denver though? Anything but ordinary.

Harrison made his NBA debut for the Suns during the 2017-18 seasons and appeared in 23 games. He then signed in Chicago and lasted two years with the Bulls but wasn’t brought back last offseason. Harrison wound up in Utah and played 17 games for the Jazz but was waived in late February before his contract for this season became fully guaranteed.

Prior to his two-way deal with the Nuggets becoming official, Harrison’s home base was still in Utah. Hours before his agent told him to pack his bags for Denver, the fourth-year pro was playing pickup basketball at a Salt Lake City Lifetime Fitness.

Upon arriving in Denver, he managed to gain the trust of the Nuggets’ coaching staff extraordinary fast. Harrison made his Nuggets debut against the Houston Rockets on April 16 and played three minutes of garbage time. Three days later, Malone subbed him in for the Memphis Grizzlies’ final possession of overtime with the Nuggets needing a stop to send the game to another extra period.

Harrison switched onto Ja Morant at the three-point line with under five seconds on the clock and helped force a miss.

Malone had the confidence to turn to Harrison in the clutch because he knew what he was getting from the 6-foot-4 guard. Harrison is all about defense. His reputation as a stout defensive player has followed him from Phoenix to Chicago to Utah and now to Denver, but was hatched back in Kansas City, Missouri, Harrison’s hometown.

“When I was a little kid, they’d make me play defense with my hands behind my back because I would steal the ball every single time,” Harrison said. “They’d make me play defense with my hands behind my back and just move my feet.”

Denver looks like the perfect fit for his skill-set. The Nuggets dealt their best perimeter defender at the trade deadline in Gary Harris, and although PJ Dozier is emerging as a go-to defensive stopper, Denver needs reinforcements. Harrison is a bulldog on the defensive end of the floor. He has a nose for the ball, and the former All-State wide receiver in high school always seems like he’s in the right place at the right time.

Harrison has already proven to be a quick study. Even though he has spent less than a month in the Nuggets’ system, he rarely makes mistakes on defense. It’s clear that Harrison has already entered Malone’s circle of trust, which has proven to be hard to infiltrate.

Offensively, it’s been a slightly steeper learning curve, but Harrison insists the Nuggets’ playbook is fairly similar to the ones he’s absorbed at his previous NBA stops. Denver just uses different verbiage. When Harrison does need a quick refresher on the Nuggets’ read-and-react offense, he’s found a trusted resource in rookie Markus Howard, who according to Harrison knows the Nuggets playbook “like the back of his hand.” If Harrison messes up a play, Howard talks him through his mistakes when he gets back to the bench. At practices and shootarounds, it’s Howard, Harrison says, who’s coaching him up the most out of any teammate.

“These guys have definitely taken me in with open arms,” Harrison said. “It’s been great so far. Every guy has been hardworking. “There’s not too many cliques. Everybody interacts with everyone. From the 17th man to the 1st man. You usually don’t see that in the NBA.”

Harrison has been a seamless fit in the Nuggets’ locker room. He’s 27-years-old. The average age of the Nuggets’ roster is 26. Harrison went undrafted out of the University of Tulsa in 2016. In Denver, he’s playing alongside a slew of fellow underdogs. The Nuggets have 10 undrafted and former second-round picks on their roster this season.

Like most of his teammates, Harrison is laid back. He just got into gaming and in his free time plays Warzone, Call of Duty and 2K. Harrison is a music lover too. Young Thug’s Slime Language 2 is heavily featured in his current rotation. Harrison also listens to R&B, Country, Techno, Rock and Alternative music.

He’s rarely on social media. The last time Harrison posted a tweet was in December 2020. He occasionally updates his Instagram story, but for the most part, stays away from the app.

“I like in the moment type of things,” Harrison said. “Sometimes it’s a distraction. I’m trying to be the best I can possibly be. I don’t want to be distracted by it.”

Harrison broke into Denver’s lineup and simply played his role, an aspect of his short but so far impactful Nuggets tenure which has impressed Malone. He’s defending his butt off and has helped the Nuggets’ second unit form a defensive identity that propelled Denver to a convincing 120-96 win over the Grizzlies on Monday. Harrison registered six steals in his first six games with Denver and the Nuggets have a sterling 101 Defensive Rating in the 86 minutes that he’s played.

“Everybody wants to be the guy,” said Harrison. “Everybody wants to score 30 points. But not everybody wants to do the dirty work and there are very limited spots for guys like that in this league. I take true pride in that. It’s not for everybody.”

Harrison had several standout defensive moments last week against the Blazers.

He’s happy to play his part on a team that still has championship hopes despite losing Jamal Murray for the season. Harrison thought Nikola Jokic should win MVP this season even before he got to Denver — he was on the fence about it until Jokic’s 47 points against Rudy Gobert and the Jazz when Harrison was still on Utah’s roster — and is in awe of how hard of a worker Jokic is behind the scenes.

“He amazes me each and every day,” Harrison said. “It’s a day off technically, and you see him in the weight room. He just played the most minutes, scored the most points, had the most rebounds, had the most assists, and you’re thinking he should take a day off. He’s in there working just like a guy who didn’t play any minutes. He’s doing the same thing they’re doing. That’s why he’s great.”

Here’s another observation from Harrison’s time in Denver: he’s always in a good mood. Harrison’s playing the game he loves for a playoff-bound team. He’s living his NBA dream and playing for a coach who believes in his blue-collar defense. In one month, Harrison could log the first postseason minutes of his career.

“I truly believe we’ve got it made. There’s always somebody in a worse position,” Harrison told DNVR. “We’re blessed. I’m very blessed to be in the position I am in. Who am I to walk around frowning about something. I’ve got to have a smile. God put me in this position.”

“Why not smile?”