Gary Harris was one of the Nuggets’ best success stories of the season. From improved shooting to timely defensive plays, he was challenged to step up his game in his second season in the NBA, and he did.
If the eye test wasn’t enough, statistics backed it up.
First, the base stats: Harris averaged 12.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He was the Nuggets’ most consistent shooter, making 46.9 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from the 3-point line.
After barely playing during his rookie season, new Nuggets coach Michael Malone dialed up the volume all the way to high on Harris’ minutes. Harris played 2,439 minutes in 76 games in 2015-16 after logging just 719 as a rookie.
“It’s all about progressing,” Harris said. “Getting more comfortable, being more comfortable out there.”
Offense:Harris got more productive as the season went on.
“I was just figuring out times when I could be aggressive and times when I could hunt for my shot,” Harris said. “Teammates helped get me in spots where I could score the ball.”
But getting himself in spots where he could score was the foundation of his success. Harris was the team’s best cutter and was very good at losing his defender and finding spots along the perimeter to get open shots. His best contribution offensively, however, was in transition.
Harris’ 1.22 points per possession in transition ranked among the best in the NBA, and he shot 62.1 percent in transition opportunities.
On rebounds, Harris many times was a one-man fast break. He’d snatch the board, sprint the ball up court himself and looked to be aggressive to the rim. Harris was one of the Nuggets’ most consistent runners as well, spaced the court well on fast breaks and was generally a threat in the open court whenever he had the ball.
The only area in transition where there can be marked improvement is in his 3-point shot.
His 1.02 points per possession in total offense ranked in the top 15 percent of the NBA.
Defense/turnovers:Harris has among the quickest hands in the NBA. His 97 steals led the Nuggets and ranked 33rd in the league.
Harris was solid in isolation defense, in which opponents only shot 36.1 percent against him.
His most common turnover was the bad pass, and a good number of those came when he was the ball handler in pick-and-roll plays.
The hard question the Nuggets must ask in reference to Harris is: How much more improvement can he make?
He certainly can take more than the 10.1 shots he averaged during the season, but will the Nuggets allow him to hoist more up? And if he does, can he maintain as high a shooting percentage?
If the answers to those questions are yes, the Nuggets would be in possession of one of the NBA’s best shooting guards.
Christopher Dempsey: cdempsey@denverpost.com or @dempseypost
