Match up to Watch: Gary Harris vs. Avery Bradley
By Mathew Huff
It will be a battle of two lock down defenders who are offensively capable as well in the match up between Avery Bradley and Gary Harris.
Both Gary Harris and Avery Bradley have been two of the most underappreciated players in the NBA for some time now.
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In this game, they will put their skill set to the test against each other. Avery Bradley is a NBA veteran who has done a bit of everything in his long career, especially with the Boston Celtics. He has been flourishing in his new home with the Detroit Pistons.
Gary Harris has been Mr. Efficient once again for the Nuggets this year. While Oladipo did hang 47 points on him last game, great lock down defenders always bounce back quickly. However, the thing to watch between these two is not their defense. It will be how effective they will be on offense.
Both players have come a long way on the offensive side of the floor since the beginning of their respective careers. While both are certainly capable of locking each other down, I actually anticipate a shoot out to ensue between these two way players.
Per basketball-reference.com, both players are averaging very similar stats this year. Bradley is averaging 12.4 points per game game so far while Harris is averaging 11. Harris is currently averaging 1.8 steals per game while Bradley is averaging 1.3 per game.
Both also have very similar defensive ratings this season as Harris currently has one of 110 while Bradley has one of 108. Not stellar numbers in this particular department, but it still doesn’t take away from their defensive talents.
For example, Gary does possess a steal percentage of 2.7% while Bradley has one of 2.1%.
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This will not just be an evenly matched game between these two teams. It will also be evenly matched between these shooting guards.