Devin Harris
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Position | Point guard |
|---|---|
| League | NBA |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Team | Dallas Mavericks |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Born | February 27, 1983 (age 24) Wauwatosa, Wisconsin |
| College | Wisconsin |
| Draft | 5th pick, 2004 Washington Wizards |
| Pro career | 2004–present |
Devin Lamar Harris (born February 27, 1983 in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin) is an American basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks. Harris attended the University of Wisconsin and gained national attention for his play at the collegiate level.
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[edit] Early life
Harris grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of Terry and Julie Harris. Throughout high school, Harris was a superior athlete and took up basketball and volleyball at Wauwatosa East High School. He only played volleyball for one season, a season in which he gained all-conference honors, before he set that aside to focus on basketball. Harris was nagged by injuries after his sophomore year of high school and was unable to participate in the summer basketball camps and tournaments that are ever important in the recruiting process.
Thus, Harris flew somewhat under the radar. Harris exploded his senior season at Wauwatosa East, setting school scoring records through an undefeated regular season. Harris was named Wisconsin's "Mr. Basketball" for 2001, edging out Travis Diener of Fond du Lac High School. Harris finally accepted an offer to play for Dick Bennett at the University of Wisconsin. Bennett retired in the midst of the upcoming season and by the time Harris arrived on campus, Bo Ryan was the head coach.
[edit] NCAA career
In Harris' freshman season, the 2001-2002 season, Harris was already a starter on a relatively unheralded team. The Badgers came into the season being predicted to finish as low as ninth in the Big Ten Conference (which has eleven teams). On a team lead by seniors Charlie Wills and Travon Davis, the Badgers won an unexpected Big Ten Championship (shared with three other teams: Indiana University, University of Illinois, and Michigan State University).
Harris' sophomore season was his "breakout" year. Harris, along with senior Kirk Penney and fellow sophomore Mike Wilkinson, led the Badgers to their second consecutive Big Ten Championship. In the NCAA Tournament, the Badgers reached the "Sweet 16". In the Sweet 16 game against the University of Kentucky, Harris showcased his skill before a national audience, despite an eventual Badger loss.
The 2003-2004 season saw Harris establish himself as one of the top players in the nation. Harris was the leader on the team and was considered a "coach on the floor" by Bo Ryan[1]. He received Big Ten Player of the Year and the Silver Basketball award, and was named a Second Team All-American. Harris decided to leave college early after his junior year to play in the NBA.
[edit] NBA career
Days prior to the draft, the Washington Wizards and Dallas Mavericks consummated a deal that involved the Wizards' 5th overall pick going to the Mavs along with Jerry Stackhouse and Christian Laettner in exchange for Antawn Jamison. NBA rules prevented teams from trading draft picks for two consecutive years (in addition to trade kicker details in Laettner's contract [2]) so the deal was momentarily delayed until the actual draft in which Washington selected Devin Harris and subsequently traded him to the Mavericks to complete the deal. The Mavs' plan was to bring Harris along slowly under the tutelage of all-star point guard Steve Nash but Nash ended up leaving the team through free agency and signing with the Phoenix Suns. [3]
In Harris' rookie season, he averaged 5.7 ppg and 2.2 apg, but put up a respectable (especially for a rookie) PER of 14.69. Also, he ranked 2nd in the NBA in steals per 48 minutes at 3.15 (behind Larry Hughes), and in November 2004 was named the got milk? Rookie of the Month. Although he started for much of the early portion of the season, his playing time dwindled as the season progressed. This could be due in part to the Mavericks' coaching change from Don Nelson to Avery Johnson in March, but also because of Harris' need to add strength to compete more efficiently at the NBA level, particularly on the defensive end.
Harris showed marked improvement in the early stages of the 2005-06 NBA season, especially when it came to scoring; as a result, his minutes increased and he took more ballhandling responsibilities from Jason Terry. He is known for his exceptional speed, resembling other NBA guards like the Phoenix Suns' Leandro Barbosa and his good friend, the Miami Heat's Dwayne Wade. [4] He ended the year with averages of 9.9 ppg and 3.2 apg. He improved his jumpshot and his ability to split defenses and get to the rim. Unfortunately, he sustained a leg injury midway through the year and missed most of the rest of the regular season. Harris returned for the playoffs and played a huge role in toppling the Mavericks' long time rivals, the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs had dominated the Mavs in recent playoff history, ending their playoff runs in 6 games in the 2003 Playoffs and 5 games in the 2001 Playoffs. In Dallas' 7 game series against the Spurs, Harris averaged 12.8 points, including a streak of 20, 24 and 18 points in three Mavs wins that wrestled control of the series away from the Spurs. NBA pundits often credit Harris' ability to capitalize on the Spurs' decision to focus its defense on Dallas's big three of Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry and Josh Howard, as the reason why Dallas was finally able to defeat the Spurs.
In the 2006-2007 season, Harris is averaging 10 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game.
[edit] External links
| 2004 NBA Draft | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Round Dwight Howard | Emeka Okafor | Ben Gordon | Shaun Livingston | Devin Harris | Josh Childress | Luol Deng | Rafael Araújo | Andre Iguodala | Luke Jackson | Andris Biedriņš | Robert Swift | Sebastian Telfair | Kris Humphries | Al Jefferson | Kirk Snyder | Josh Smith | J.R. Smith | Dorell Wright | Jameer Nelson | Pavel Podkolzin | Viktor Khryapa | Sergei Monia | Delonte West | Tony Allen | Kevin Martin | Sasha Vujačić | Beno Udrih | David Harrison |
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| Second Round Anderson Varejão | Jackson Vroman | Peter John Ramos | Lionel Chalmers | Donta Smith | Andre Emmett | Antonio Burks | Royal Ivey | Chris Duhon | Albert Miralles | Justin Reed | David Young | Viktor Sanikidze | Trevor Ariza | Tim Pickett | Bernard Robinson | Ha Seung-Jin | Pape Sow | Ricky Minard | Sergei Lishouk | Vassilis Spanoulis | Christian Drejer | Romain Sato | Matt Freije | Rickey Paulding | Luis Flores | Marcus Douthit | Sergei Karaulov | Blake Stepp | Rashad Wright |
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