Harris ready to pass the playoff test this time
When Brooklyn bowed out of last year’s playoffs in the first round, Joe Harris was the X-factor. Philadelphia erased him and eliminated the Nets offense.
The Nets will tip off their first-round Game 1 on Monday against Toronto knowing they’ll need more of an impact from their sharp-shooting wing.
“Joe will definitely garner some attention from them, unlike our other shooters on the team just because of his effectiveness at catch-and-shoot,” interim coach Jacque Vaughn said.
“But there are other elements to Joe’s game that have been elevated from last year — whether it’s his ability to put the ball on the bounce and get to the rim, or put the ball on the bounce and create opportunities for his teammates. Hopefully he’s progressed as a player and senses that, and we’re able to take advantage if they’re extremely aggressive against Joe.”
After leading the NBA in 3-point shooting last year at 47.4 percent, Harris went ice cold in the playoffs. He hit 3 of 4 in the opening win in Philadelphia, but after the Sixers focused on him, sank just 1 of 17 as the Nets lost the next four games.
It’s an experience Harris insists he and the Nets have learned from.
“The sole fact of that experience, being able to know what the playoffs feel like, what the intensity is like, being there before that helps a lot,” Harris said. “For a lot of us last year it was our first time in significant roles in the playoffs.
“It just helps. Experience is the best teacher.”
Jamal Crawford (hamstring) is out for Game 1. Chris Chiozza (adductor) and Donta Hall (ankle) — both of whom missed the regularseason finale — were not listed on the injury report.
While Vaughn has elected to have Jarrett Allen lay off several stretch fives in the bubble, he knows Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka pose an outside threat.
“Yes, Serge and Marc both have the capability of shooting the basketball from 3,” Vaughn said. “We’ll be in a position where we’ll help JA, we’ll help Donta, we’ll help Rodi [Kurucs] and other guys guard them. But the premium is us playing team defense. We’ll give them something, but at the same time, we’ll be in a position to cover back to those guys.”
The Nets will see Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who spent his first four seasons in Brooklyn before being let go and signing with Toronto. He averaged seven points and 4.7 boards in 60 games for the Raptors, but says he’s proud of the way the Nets are playing and still has good relationships with a number of them.
“I talk to Caris [LeVert]. We had a good relationship, still proud of him and everything that he’s doing. Aside from that I talk to [security director] Fred Galloway every day, kind of like a mentor,” HollisJefferson said. “Every time I see him we just talk about life and doing things making the world a better place.”