Leave It To The Cleveland Cavaliers To Get Rid Of Joe Harris
Image Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Leave it to the Cleveland Cavaliers to mess things up. Joe Harris was once a member of the team. The Cavs decided to trade the 3-point specialist. Nobody thought anything of it at the time, but it ended up being on the team’s biggest blunders.
You’ll say to yourself, how does a guy who averages 13.9 points become one of the team’s biggest fails? Because it’s the Cavs. Cleveland can use all the help they can get.
Joe Harris wasn’t always a top 3-point shooter in the NBA. He averaged 2.7 points for his first season in the NBA.
Of course, the Cavs were fighting for a title so he rarely played. Brooklyn gave him minutes in the 20’s, and after four years of steady improvement, Harris went from 2.7 points to 13.9 points per game. Harris might average 13.9 points on a team with DeAngelo Russell, Caris LaVert, and Spencer Dinwidde, but, on the Cavs, he’s the team’s best scorer outside of Kevin Love.
Pairing Harris with Cedi Osman, Love, and Sexton is a nice core to build around. Not saying it’s a guaranteed trip to the playoffs, but his 3-point ability would really open up the floor for the team. The Nets have given him fee reign to shoot on offense. That’s what the Cavs should have done. Still, Harris can do a lot more than what he’s been doing.
Harris has shot only 132 shots from three this season. That’s good for 14th in the NBA. With that being said, he’s 2nd in the league in 3-point percentage at a .471 clip. Harris has proven how deadly he can be fron beyond the arc. He’s also doing this with very limited opportunity.
Harris has a usage rate of 16.9 percent. That’s percentage is good for 12th on the Nets. Imagine that, a guy who averages 13.9 points is used 16.9 percent of his time on the floor. For comparison, DeAngelo Russell has a 29.7 usage rate. Just think of how much more the Cavs would use a guy like Harris on the court.
You can’t blame the Cavs for trading Joe Harris. How were they supposed to know what kind of a shooter he’d be? Had they not been fighting to clear room for a Finals run, he might still be on the team. Harris has gotten himself into position to be a key player for the Nets going into the playoff run.
Winning the 3-point Shootout over NBA All-Star Weekend will get Joe Harris a lot more notoriety. Assuming Harris continues this play this year and next, he’ll be getting a lot more than $7 million per year when he’s a free agent in 2020. The Nets found a gem, the Cavs gave up too early. That’s just how it goes in Cleveland. And now they’ll never get the chance the right their wrong and bring him back.
Daniel is a guru of baseball and basketball prospects. He’s a very experienced Amusement Park traveler as well. Follow him and his hot takes on Insta @dgentleman9288
