Nuggets GM says new deal for Harris is “in the works”
Nuggets general manager Arturas Karnisovas told The Denver Post on Thursday afternoon that a contract extension for starting shooting guard Gary Harris is “in the works” and that he hopes the franchise and Harris “can get something done before the season starts.”
“He’s been such a huge part of what we’re trying to do here, a representation of what we’re building here,” Karnisovas said of Harris during a visit to The Denver Post’s newsroom. “Him going through trade rumors and still staying with us and being consistent and being a good leader for our guys and (knowing) how to do it, he was the ultimate professional.
“We’re trying to find ways to keep him here as long as we can.”
Harris, who averaged 14.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists as a third-year pro last season, is under contract through the 2018-19 season. He is slated to make $2.55 million this season and $3.64 million in 2018-19.
Karnisovas chatted with Alexis Perry during a Facebook Live interview and also
spoke to The Post’s Gina Mizell. Here is more from that conversation:
So far, so good. We’re 3-0. There were glimpses of a couple players shining. Paul Millsap in the third quarter against Golden State (when he scored 16 points). Gary’s second game (when he scored 25 points against the Lakers). Yesterday, everybody looked great (against the Lakers). We had 19 3s and lots of firepower. But the emphasis was more on getting stops defensively. We still see a lot of getting used to each other. Turning the ball over then turns into easy points for the other team, so we try to eliminate those. Mainly, the training camp and the last three games, we’re getting used to each other and rotations that the coaches put together.
Coach Malone is coaching hard, even when we’re up by 24, and that’s what the preseason is for. I think the next step for us, because a lot of players are actually playing well, is to kind of settle down on rotations that we play on Oct. 18. We’ve got two more games to go. The preseason this year is different from the previous years because it’s obviously short and (there are) less games. You worry about your stuff more than trying this player here or trying this player here. Now it’s more settling to the way you want to play on Oct. 18.
We welcome that. It’s a competitive spirit, and we want our training camp to be competitive. We didn’t want to just give guys playing time. We want them to earn it. That’s a good approach. Whoever earns minutes in the preseason is going to play.
That’s the thing with vets — they know their bodies well and they know exactly when they’re going to get in their top shape in training camp little by little. Obviously for Paul, he’s playing with these guys for the first time, so (they’re) learning each other. Especially him playing with Nikola (Jokic), learning each other’s tendencies. But there were a lot of positive things in the preseason games. Like the third quarter against Golden State, Paul went off for 16 (points). Those were kind of signs of when we struggled to finish games last year, I think the ball is probably going to be in Paul’s or Nikola’s hands. We shouldn’t have issues of deciding who’s going to touch the ball in the last minute.
Overall, it’s continuity and do not exaggerate your wins and don’t overexaggerate your losses. Just kind of stay calm through all this process. I think we also have to figure out the healthy balance between young talent and meshing it with veteran players. Players like Paul. We chased (Dwyane) Wade before. We kind of need players in the locker room that have done it. Paul has been an all-star four times and he’s been part of 60-win teams. It was important for us to find a formula that we can kind of use a vet. Last year, we were (one of the) top-three youngest teams in the league. When we added Paul, we were very excited. Ultimate professional. Good teammate. Our young players gravitate toward that kind of good example, and they learn from it.
Progress is a good word. We never like to put a number on wins. Playoffs is our target. Where, in terms of (seeding), we don’t know. But I think from previous years, we need to start well. The first 20 games are a huge emphasis for us, to be competitive and hopefully to stay .500 and over .500. Just be better than last year. We were close last year to making the playoffs, so this year should be a good year. I think we have a group of young players that got better, and we added Paul Millsap. Hopefully, we can stay healthy. That’s always a huge factor.