25. Devin Harris at Phoenix Suns, Nov. 30, 2008
Devin Harris entered the 2008-09 season with a bit of pressure. After all, he was the focal point of a blockbuster trade the previous February that sent future Hall of Fame point guard Jason Kidd to the Dallas Mavericks and brought in Harris to replace him.
On Nov. 30, 2008, at what was then known as US Airways Center in Phoenix, Harris had his signature game as a Net on his way to securing his lone career All-Star berth.
Sir Charles In Charge
Phoenix was one of the Western Conference’s elite clubs, coming off a 55-win season, a controversial first-round loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the playoffs and the defection of coach Mike D’Antoni to the New York Knicks in the offseason.
But they still had two-time MVP Steve Nash and aging Shaquille O’Neal to lean on.
The Suns broke out to an early lead, going up by 12 on a 3-ball by Matt Barnes midway through the first period, and were up 35-24 at the end of the first.
Then Harris got cooking, helping the Nets climb back into the game with a 15-point second quarter as Phoenix’s lead was cut to 62-56 by the half.
The pace slowed in the second half, but the Suns were able to get the lead back into double digits at 85-74 entering the final period of play.
What the Suns didn’t have was an answer for Devin Harris.
Harris scored the first 10 points for New Jersey in the fourth quarterm, a personal 10-3 run that cut the Suns’ lead to 88-84 with 8:55 remaining.
The teams played back-and-forth for the next six minutes or so, with New Jersey getting the deficit down to one twice before Vince Carter tied the game with a 3-pointer on a dish from Harris with 2:45 to go.
Harris’ 15-foot jumper on their next possession gave New Jersey its first lead since it was 2-0 18 seconds into the contest. That was part of an 11-2 run that gave the Nets control of the game, with Harris canning six free throws in the final minute to help ice a 117-109 road win.
Harris scored 21 points in the fourth period, part of a career-high 47 on the night. In 41 minutes, he was 14-for-25 from the floor, 2-for-3 from 3-point range and a perfect 17-for-17 at the stripe, adding eight assists and seven rebounds while outdueling Nash, who finished with 26 points and nine dimes.
Harris would go on to average 21.3 points, 6.9 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals while shooting .438/.291/.820 in 2008-09.