For those who might not be aware, the NBA has decided to host chats and interviews on their Instagram pages through the Instagram Live feature. There have been various guests on the “mini-show” ranging from current players to retired players to other personnel within the NBA world. On Monday, April 6, Brooklyn Nets’ sharpshooter Joe Harris was interviewed by Ian Eagle. You’ve probably heard him while enjoying an NFL game, an NBA game on TNT, a college basketball game on CBS, or, if you’re a fan of the Brooklyn Nets, you’ll definitely have heard him commentating their games on the local YES Network. Throughout the interview, Joe gives us insight into what life has been like for the average NBA player during quarantine as well as share stories and background of his own life.
One of the lone good things to come out of this quarantine situation is being able to get to know the players in the NBA on a more personal basis. These are people that younger generations look up to and idolize, and it’s important for these players to be relatable. It’s also fun to get behind the scenes intel on some of the happenings around the league. Luckily, Harris delved into both of these topics.
In today’s league, Joe Harris is known as a premier shooting threat who can also play solid defense, but it was interesting to find out that Harris grew up in the northwest, claiming that he paid majority of his attention to the Supersonics, the old NBA franchise that used to play in Seattle and later moved to Oklahoma to become known as the Thunder. Even more interesting to hear was that the player Harris initially fell in love with was the high flying Shawn Kemp. Someone who doesn’t exactly mirror Harris’ game. He claims though that as he grew up, he learned to admire the Ray Allen’s of the league and how they could shoot the ball so effortlessly.
So how would Harris follow in the footsteps of the NBA’s best shooters? Well, it was rumored that he would take 1,000 shots a day growing up. An idea that stays consistent amongst the all-time great shooters. Funny enough, Ian Eagle asked Harris if this was a legitimate fact and Harris was quick to deny it. Although he did talk about how his dad being the high school coach in his hometown did provide him with plenty of opportunity to work on his game whenever he wanted.
Whether he actually took a thousand shots a day or not, it can’t be mistaken the amount of time and effort that Harris has put into every offseason, making sure that he grows as a player every year. This effort is evident through the league’s recognition of Harris by putting him in the league’s annual Three Point Contest at All-Star Weekend in both 2019 and 2020. Since the 2019 season was a sort of breakout campaign for the Nets’ guard, the Brooklyn promotional team decided to put together a promotional video for Harris prior to the competition. A fun short video with some, as expected, sub-par acting from Harris himself along with a few of his teammates. It must have done something for him though, as he would go on to win the competition while battling other great shooters like Steph Curry and Damian Lillard.
Nowadays though, Harris has found it difficult to keep his shot functioning given the circumstances of living right now. His job is based on his ability to be a deadeye shooter and, like many other players facing a similar situation, Harris hasn’t shot a basketball in weeks. He’s tried his best to do smaller scale drills in order to simulate shooting a basketball, but there is nothing that can match the true movement of shooting a basketball. As for his conditioning, the Nets organization has been delivering stationary bikes and other machines to the player’s homes in order to help maintain their playing shape.
So, while this whole circumstance has brought a lot of confusion and panic, interviews like these have been a rather interesting byproduct. Fans would never have gotten such an in-depth conversation with a player like Joe Harris but being able to see him as more of a person, rather than just a guy on TV could hold big potential for him and his popularity. It’s inspiring to see him willing to share and open up to those who look up to him. If you find yourself intrigued by Harris and his stories, I recommend you go watch the interview which can be found on the official NBA’s Instagram account for yourself.
-Noah Kokkinos
thesplitcutwrites.water.blog 