Kyrie Irving knew Joe Harris was going to be a special player even back in their Cleveland days. Now that he’s made himself into just that, the Nets have to make sure all that work doesn’t become overwork.
After making his Team USA debut this summer in China, Harris is now in camp with the Nets — and eyeing his workload.
“In regards to the workload, we’ve got to be very careful with a guy like that, who has carried a really big load for the last two to three months,” GM Sean Marks said. “What an incredible opportunity for Joe to be out there representing his country; he did a marvelous job.”
A whirlwind year for Harris started with him getting a new contract last summer, winning the NBA 3-point crown last season and playing in the FIBA World Cup over the summer.
“I didn’t really think about it in that sense. I was more obviously just excited for the opportunity,” Harris said. “I looked at it as the best sort of offseason program that I could have. Obviously there’s a lot of travel, and you’re away from your home for a while.
“But in terms of individual development, you’re playing against some of the best players in the world, whether it’s your teammates … or the competition you’re facing at the World Cup. And then you’re around all the great coaches. Kenny [Atkinson] was like, ‘This is a no-brainer. There’s no better offseason program for individual development.’ ”
With the truncated summer break, the 16-hour flights and jet lag, the risk of fatigue is there. So the Nets sent a rep with Harris to China to monitor his workload and help the sports science department map out a plan upon his return.“They monitor a lot of our training loads, and they did it even while I was away, so they know where my body is at in terms of the high-intensity load,” Harris said. “Coming back, it was two weeks [of] just short recovery training sessions, and I’ve started tapering back into live work where at the start of training camp I can do full-go.”
Harris topped all Nets holdovers in minutes and led the NBA at 47.4 percent shooting from 3.
“I knew Joe was going to be special enough to be a great piece for a team right when I saw him,” Irving said.
Irving did not practice Sunday after suffering a facial fracture last week. He’s expected to wear a mask when he returns. … DeAndre Jordan and Jarrett Allen are already having physical battles that will benefit the young incumbent. “It’s great,” Atkinson said. “They went at it a little. I saw a little jostling, a couple elbows. It’s good for Jarrett.”