Imagine you could go back in time to 2015 and explain to Nuggets Nation that Gary Harris was going to be the team’s MVP in 4 years. Harris was just coming off of his rookie season in which he played fewer minutes than Randy Foye. He also made just five more field goals than Erick Green, his friend and fellow end-of-bench guard who at the time looked only slightly less promising than Garris. As a shooting guard, Harris made just 20% of his three-pointers and 40% of his two-pointers.
Fast-forward to 2018 and Harris is an $84 million man and worth every single penny. There’s an argument to be made about whether or not he’s the Denver Nuggets’ most talented player or whether or not he has the highest ceiling but there isn’t much of an argument that he has been the team’s most consistently great player all season.
Every month Harris seems to add new pieces to his game. He’s making shots off of the bounce and creating points out of thin air, something he rarely did last season. He’s also stepping up in the clutch. Against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, Harris poured in 7 of the team’s last 9 points including a few big-time jumpers. Two games prior he locked up Damian Lillard in the final moments of a tense game, sealing the deal for the Nuggets.
Harris has grown so much in just four years. Think about that rookie year spent on the bench back in 2015 as you watch these highlights. And think about where he’ll be in another four years.
