Devin Harris

At 41 years old, Devin Harris has this physical status:

Devin Lamar Harris (born February 27, 1983) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association. (NBA)

Harris attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Harris was selected with the fifth pick in the Washington Wizards' 2004 NBA draft.

Early life

Harris was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; the son of Terry and Julie Harris. Harris was a natural performer in high school and played basketball and volleyball at Wauwa East High School. He played volleyball for just one season, an all-conference championships season in which he earned all-conference awards, before deciding on basketball. Harris was plagued by injuries after his sophomore year of high school, and he was unable to participate in the summer basketball camps and tournaments that have always been vital in recruiting.

Harris exploded his senior season at Wauwatosa East in 2001, establishing school scoring records as a result of an undefeated regular season. For 2001, Harris was named Wisconsin's "Mr. Basketball," edging out Travis Diener of Fond du Lac High School. Harris eventually accepted an invitation from Dick Bennett at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Bennett resigned in the middle of the fall semester, and Bo Ryan, the head coach, by the time Harris arrived on campus, was already the head coach.

At the 2007 wedding receptions, Wauwatosa East retired Harris' number 20 jersey.

Personal life

Harris is said to have over 400 pairs of sneakers. Keyon Dooling, a former teammate, is credited with helping him with his wardrobe so he would appear "like an NBA star." Harris holds a Guinness World Record for "fastest man with a basketball," who is able to run the length of the court in 3.9 seconds. Harris received the NBA Community Assist Award in 2009 for his work with his charitable charity "34 Ways to Assist."

Meghan Allen, a former Fear Factor contestant (2004) and Playboy Cyber Club model, married Harris in 2013. They have two children.

Following the death of his brother, Harris was given leave from the Mavericks in October 2017.

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College career

He was a starter on an unheralded squad in Harris' rookie season, 2001–02. The Badgers were expected to finish ninth in the Big Ten Conference this season (which had eleven teams at the time). The Badgers won an unexpected Big Ten Championship (shared with three other teams: Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio State), led by seniors Charlie Wills and Travon Davis.

Harris' sophomore season was his "breakout" year. The Badgers defeated the Kentucky Badgers in their second straight Big Ten Championship, with senior Kirk Penney and fellow sophomore Mike Wilkinson winning their second straight Big Ten Championships, where he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament. The Badgers earned the "Sweet 16" in the NCAA tournament. Despite a potential loss to the Badgers, Harris displayed his versatility before a national audience in the Sweet 16 game against Kentucky.

Harris was named as one of the nation's best players in the 2003–04 season. Harris was the team's leader and Bo Ryan regarded him as a "coach on the floor." He has been named a Second Team All-American, received the Big Ten Player of the Year and the Silver Basketball award. Harris left college early in junior to play in the NBA.

NBA career

The Washington Wizards and Dallas Mavericks decided to a mutually exclusive pick between the Wizards and the Mavericks in exchange for Antawn Jamison, days before the draft. Draft picks were banned from trading draft picks for two years in a row (in addition to trade kicker information in Laettner's case), so the deal was momentarily postponed until the actual draft, in which Washington selected Harris and then traded him to the Mavericks to complete the deal. The Mavs' proposal was to bring Harris along slowly under the tutelage of all-star point guard Steve Nash, but Nash left the team through free agency and signing with the Phoenix Suns.

Harris averaged 5.7 points and 2.2 assists per game in his rookie season, but he had a PERFORMANCE of 14.69. At 3.15 he ranked second in steals per 48 minutes (behind Larry Hughes) and was named Rookie of the Month in November 2004. Although he started for a good portion of the season, his playing time dwindled as the season progressed.

Harris made strides in the early stages of the 2005–06 season, particularly when it came to scoring; as a result, his minutes increased and he assumed more ball-handling duties from Jason Terry. He is known for his extraordinary agility, earning comparisons to other NBA guards, like Leandro Barbosa of the Phoenix Suns and his close friend, Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat, who is known for his ingenuity. He finished the year with 9.9 points and 3.2 assists per game. He improved his jump-shot and his ability to split defenses and get to the rim. He suffered a leg injury early in the year and missed the bulk of the regular season. Harris returned to the playoffs and was instrumental in the overthrowaching of the San Antonio Spurs, the Mavericks' longtime rivals. The Spurs had dominated the Mavs in recent playoff history, winning their playoff appearances in 6 games in 2003 and 5 games in 2001. Devin Harris and the Mavericks reached the NBA Finals in 2006, where they lost to the Miami Heat 4 games to 2.

Harris averaged 10.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game in the 2006–07 season. He was the starting point guard for the Mavericks in 2006-07 season, but the Mavericks were knocked out by the eighth-seeded Golden State Warriors in the 2007 playoffs, despite being the starting point guard for their team's record of 67 victories. Harris, who was averaging career highs of 14.4 points per game and 5.4 assists per game, was halfway through the 2007-08 season. In 2007,–08, he and Dirk Nowitzki were named a co-captain.

Keith Van Horn, Trenton Hassell, DeSagana Diop, Maurice Ager, and two first-round draft picks were traded to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Jason Kidd, Malik Allen, and Antoine Wright on February 19, 2008. In his Nets home game debut against the Milwaukee Bucks, he scored 21 points and five assists in less than 21 minutes. He was treated to chanting of "Dev-in Harris" toward the end of the game.

Dev-in Harris!

In the Nets' next home game against the San Antonio Spurs, the first 5,000 fans received Harris T-shirts, and the first 5,000 players were given Harris T-shirts." For the first time in seven years, New Jersey's coach expressed dissatisfaction with the way he played through the season's season, and he said he'd mainly have to work on his offense over the summer.

Harris recorded a career-high 38 points against Allen Iverson, who was playing his first appearance with the Detroit Pistons on November 7, 2008. In the Nets' first victory in Phoenix since 1993, he improved that record on November 30 with 47 points, including 21 in both the first half and the fourth quarter. Harris put on a spectacular showing against his former team on December 19, when he was practically traded, Jason Kidd. Nets fans were chanting "Thank you Cuban" as the game came to an end. (Mark Cuban, the team's owner, was in courthouse). Harris was named a reserve for the 2009 NBA All-Star Game on January 29, 2009. It was the first and only time Harris was named an All-Star in his career. Harris won the game 98–96 on February 23, 2009 in a match against the 76ers. He converted a half-court buzzer-beating 47-foot shot, "the Harris Heave."

The Nets cut Vince Carter on the same day as the 2009 NBA draft, allowing Harris to assume the role of team captain. Harris was out for significant portions of the season due to shoulder and ankle injuries, as well as the team's legendary 0-18 start. His personal game, figures, and general ability were all down from last year, but he did manage to lift his averages to just under 17 points per game and 6 assists per game. Harris undertook a weight training course during the summer of 2010 at Nets' head coach (and Harris' former head coach in Dallas) Avery Johnson's in order to minimize his risk of injury. With Tim Grover, he managed to gain 15 pounds of muscle while still working on his defense.

Harris was traded to the Utah Jazz on February 23, 2011, along with rookie Derrick Favors, two draft picks, and $3 million cash in exchange for Deron Williams.

Harris was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Marvin Williams on July 11, 2012.

Harris would return to his former team, the Dallas Mavericks, in early July 2013. However, the agreement was later cancelled after it was discovered that Harris needed surgery for a toe fracture. Despite the injury concerns, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban declared his intention to reunite with Harris, claiming that after a restructured contract, he'd be back to the team. Harris and the Mavericks agreed to a one-year, $1.3 million contract on July 31.

Harris scored six points off the bench in the Mavericks' 127–111 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on January 18, 2014. In a victory over the Indiana Pacers on March 9, he played well off the bench for the Mavericks in the second half of the 2013–14 season, scoring a season-high 20 points on March 9. During the Mavericks' first-round series loss to the San Antonio Spurs, his play off the bench was impressive, scoring over 17 points in three of the series's seven games.

Harris re-signed with the Mavericks on July 17, 2014, extending his deal to four years, $16.5 million. Harris was more active than he had been in the previous year as the team's wily veteran, and it showed. He appeared in just six games all season, providing a constant spark off the bench alongside Rajon Rondo and Monta Ellis. Harris scored a season-high 21 points against the Denver Nuggets in the team's fourth game of the season on April 10. He went on to participate in four of the Mavericks' five first-round playoff games against the Houston Rockets. In the 4–1 series loss, his 2014 playoff form did not carry over to 2015, with him scoring in double figures in just one game and shooting 8-of-23 from the field.

Harris appeared in 40 of the team's first 46 games, averaging 7.4 points off the bench, in a game. A left big toe strain suffered in late January has kept him out of action for ten games, but the Philadelphia 76ers have returned to action on February 21.

Harris was ruled out for the first three weeks of the 2016–17 season after sprained his right big toe during preseason on October 26, 2016. After missing the first 16 games, he made his season debut against the San Antonio Spurs on November 30, 2016.

Harris was acquired by the Denver Nuggets in a three-team trade that also involved the Mavericks and the New York Knicks, in which Doug McDermott was sent to the Mavericks and the New York Knicks were sent to the Mavericks and Emmanuel Mudiay was sent to the Knicks on February 8, 2018. Harris scored 10,000 points for his career on March 6, 2018.

Harris signed with the Dallas Mavericks on August 8, 2018, marking his third appearance with the team. He missed ten games early in the season due to a left hamstring strain. Harris led the Mavericks in scoring with a season high 20 points in a 128-108 victory over the Houston Rockets on November 28, 2013.

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