The Brooklyn Nets have re-signed Joe Harris.
It’s the next best thing, Nets fans! James Harden isn’t making his way to Brooklyn yet, but Joe Harris will be with the franchise for the foreseeable future.
According to the latest reports, the sharpshooter has signed a four-year, $75 million contract to remain in Brooklyn and he’ll help fortify the roster around Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
It’s not the flashiest of moves. In fact, it was largely expected. But it’s a championship transaction because this team will do considerable damage outside of KD and Irving when push comes to shove. Harris returning and the addition of Landry Shamet are exactly what this team needs if they’re not going after Harden.
Free agent guard Joe Harris has agreed to a four-year, $75M deal to return to the Brooklyn Nets, his agent Mark Bartelstein @PrioritySports tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 21, 2020
Harris, 29, had career campaigns in each of the past two seasons. In 2018-2019 he led the league in three-point field goal percentage in what was his best season to date. This past year, he averaged a career-high 14.5 points and 4.3 rebounds in 69 games, helping the Nets make it to the bubble and grab a playoff spot despite the roster being decimated.
This has to be a comforting sense of normalcy for Nets fans, who have been dealing with the roller coaster Harden rumors as well as the hard-to-believe Serge Ibaka speculation. Harris provides the Nets with consistency and familiarity, and the fact that the Nets have seen him grow over the last four years has to have them feeling good about the investment.
Strong indications that the Nets will be securing commitment from the sharpshooting Joe Harris despite considerable external interest
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 20, 2020
We’ve witnessed how important potent three-point shooters have been on championship teams, especially those who are not the focal point of the offense. Durant and Irving are going to need reliable guys to dish it out to, as we’ve seen be the key with so many title contenders over the past decade.
General manager Sean Marks is laying the groundwork around his two stars and it’s hard to argue the supporting cast of Harris, Spencer Dinwiddie, Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen isn’t one of the best in the NBA. The moves were there for the Nets to make. They made the perfect decision with the No. 19 pick. They overpaid for Harris, but it had to be done.
With or without Harden, the Nets should be the overwhelming favorites in the east given their star power and depth.
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