With an 11-point spurt, Gary Harris quickly reminds Nuggets of one of his most underrated qualities

Even after hitting one of the biggest shots of his life, Gary Harris kept his poker face.

Harris’ walk-off buzzer-beater against the Thunder last year — his first game-winner since a three-point heave lifted Hamilton Southeastern into the second round of Indiana’s 2012 state basketball sectional — was arguably the most significant shot of the Nuggets’ season. Yet, the mild-mannered shooting guard kept didn’t show an ounce of emotion as he sprinted off the court and towards Denver’s locker room where he was mobbed by teammates. In those late-game moments, make or miss, Harris is as cool as the other side of the pillow. It’s part of the workman-like, Midwest makeup that’s helped the two-guard emerge as one of the Nuggets’ most reliable fourth-quarter scorers over the last couple of seasons.

Harris was stationary on the sidelines early in the fourth quarter watching from the Nuggets’ bench as the Lakers roared back from a 17-point halftime deficit Wednesday night to cut Denver’s lead to two with 10 minutes remaining in regulation. But as he walked to the scorer’s table, set to clock in for his next shift, you got the sense that whatever momentum Los Angeles had quickly grasped was about to dissipate.

A few minutes after checking in, Harris soared for a pair of offensive rebounds, meeting the basketball at its apex as if he was leaping to catch a jump ball in the end zone like the blue-chip wide receiver he was in high school. (Harris swears to this day he was a better football player than hooper growing up.) Then Harris connected on his first three of the game, a standstill triple from the left corner.

Note to future courtside patrons: Don’t talk trash to Denver’s starting two guard.

On the Nuggets’ next possession, another three from the same spot on the floor.

Then Harris plays bully ball with Alex Caruso, taking the smaller reserve guard into the post and showing off his physicality and strength. Harris got the hoop plus the free throw to push the Nuggets’ lead to seven.

Harris’ final hoop of an 11-point spurt: a sweeping right-handed drive to the rim right past Rajon Rondo.

Five minutes was all Harris needed to end L.A.’s spirited comeback bid and spoil LeBron James’ historic night when the Lakers’ forward passed Michael Jordan for fourth place on the all-time scoring list. The Nuggets ended a three-game losing streak, easing past the Lakers 115-99.

Harris has closed games for the Nuggets before like last year’s thriller against the Thunder and other fourth-quarter nailbiters, and over the last two years, Harris is shooting 30-65 (46 percent) in the clutch — when the score is within five points with five minutes or less remaining. The only Nuggets player who’s more accurate under those circumstances is Paul Millsap, who’s shooting 26-41 (63 percent). It was no surprise when the ball found Harris’ hands for a potential game-winner Monday in San Antonio. Harris’ shot bounced off the iron, but he was still able to get off a quality look.

“Gary never gets fazed,” Michael Malone told reporters following the Nuggets’ win. “He’s very calm, especially when things are getting tight. And you need that.”

Harris finished with 19 points on a sparkling 8-11 shooting from the field against the Lakers. His well-rounded night, which also included six rebounds and four assists, was a welcomed sight for the Nuggets who had seen two of their oft-injured starters — Millsap and Will Barton — find their rhythm over the last few games but not Harris. Prior to Wednesday’s matchup, Harris had appeared in six games since returning from a seven-game absence due to a right adductor strain but had only posted double-figure scoring numbers once. Meanwhile, Millsap and Barton have looked like their pre-injury selves over the last couple of weeks.

The Nuggets will need Harris to channel the consistent and reliable two-way player he was last season when the 24-year-old averaged 17.5 points while shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 39.6 from three while giving Denver sturdy defensive play from the shooting guard position. A multitude of injuries have kept Harris from reaching that same level of play on offense so far this season, but he’s routinely flashed the defensive skill-set and promise that Nuggets coaches think will continue to bolster their defense over the remainder of the season. He had multiple standout defensive possessions Wednesday, and the Lakers only averaged 86.9 points per 100 possessions in the 30 minutes Harris played.

Denver’s defense is holding steady at 10th overall after a two-month nosedive. Much of the Nuggets’ recent improvement on that end of the floor can be attributed to Harris’ defensive presence, and Millsap’s, who’s now healthy too. Barton has also had a couple of above-average defensive performances lately, like against the Thunder when he helped hold Paul George to 25 points on 7-24 shooting, and as the Nuggets enter their final month-long regular-season stretch run, they’ll need to place a premium on keeping Harris injury-free. Malone has done just that, by slowly and carefully ramping up Harris’ minutes from the low-20’s because he knows his defense and also his fourth-quarter scoring and clutch shot-making will be even more valuable in the playoffs.

The Nuggets’ first five — Murray, Harris, Barton, Millsap and Nikola Jokic — outscored the Lakers by 26 points in 30 minutes. On the season, Denver’s starters boast a 35.0 Net Rating in 122 minutes, the highest point differential of any five-man lineup that has logged over 100 minutes together this season.

If that group is healthy in the playoffs, it could be the Nuggets equivalent of playing a royal flush.