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Denver Nuggets: 2 players who must step up vs. Celtics

By Grayson Moore

BOSTON, MA - DECEMBER 13: Kyrie Irving #11 of the Boston Celtics handles the ball against the Denver Nuggets on December 13, 2017 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - DECEMBER 13: Kyrie Irving #11 of the Boston Celtics handles the ball against the Denver Nuggets on December 13, 2017 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Denver Nuggets Gary Harris  (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
Denver Nuggets Gary Harris  (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Player #1: Gary Harris

Gary Harris has been the Nuggets second best player this season, and there hasn’t been a ton of competition.

Harris is averaging 18.9 points, which is a team high for the Nuggets, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.2 assists on 48.1% shooting from the field. He is also just one of 7 players so far this season to have a USG% of 22%+ and a PPG average of 15+ with a TO% below 7%. Despite all of this, there are still some things he can work on.

He is currently shooting 26.8% from 3-point range on 4.6 attempts per game. While it isn’t just Harris on a massive 3-point drop off from last season, Harris’ low percentage is perhaps the most surprising. He shot 39.6% from beyond the arc last season and was one of just 14 players in the league to post that percentage on 5.5+ attempts per game. So it is borderline shocking that he is performing so terribly from 3-point range.

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However, I fully expect him to bounce back. He is a career 36.7% 3-point shooter, and over the past two seasons, he has averaged 40.4% from beyond the arc. Good shooters don’t just stop becoming good shooters for no reason. Harris will return to form eventually. Why not against the Celtics?

While he will be going up against two phenomenal perimeter defenders in Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart, Harris should only need to draw inspiration from last season to get over those concerns. In the first matchup between the Nuggets and the Celtics last season, Harris dropped 36 points and 6 assists on 64% shooting from the field and 37.5% shooting from 3.

Hopefully, we’ll see that version of Harris instead of the 26.8% 3-point shooter we’ve seen this season.

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