Brooklyn Nets Trade Former Wahoo Joe Harris to Detroit Pistons

The former UVA sharpshooter spent the last seven seasons in Brooklyn and leaves as the franchise's all-time leader in three-pointers made

Former Virginia sharpshooter Joe Harris is on the move. The Brooklyn Nets have reportedly traded Harris to the Detroit Pistons, as first reported by The Athletic's Shams Charania on Friday afternoon. Per the report, the Pistons are also receiving two second-round draft picks from the Nets, who are freeing up nearly $20 million in cap space by trading Harris, who will be in the final year of his contract next season. 

After a legendary four-year career at Virginia, Harris was selected with the 33rd overall pick in the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he spent the first season and a half of his NBA career before injuries caused him to be traded and waived before ultimately signing with the Nets. Harris spent the last seven seasons in Brooklyn, where he developed into one of the top three-point shooters in the NBA, headlined by him taking down Stephen Curry to win the 2019 NBA Three-Point Shooting Contest. In 2021, Harris passed Jason Kidd as Brooklyn's all-time franchise leader in three-pointers made and currently sits atop that list with 984 made threes with the Nets. 

The best run of Harris' career came from 2018 through 2021 when he made the most of his opportunity as a regular starter in Brooklyn's lineup. Harris lead the entire league in three-point shooting at 47.4% in 2018-2019, averaged a career-high in scoring at 14.5 points per game in 2019-2020, and then led the NBA in three-point shooting again at 47.5% in 2020-2021. 

That success has not continued, though, as Harris played just 14 games in the 2021-2022 season due to injury and then saw his role decline this past season, averaging 20.6 minutes played per game (lowest of any season he played in Brooklyn), scoring 7.6 points per game (lowest since his second season in the NBA), and shooting 42.6% from three (lowest since the 2017-2018 season). 

This is a move that makes sense for both the Nets and Joe Harris. Brooklyn creates a $19.9 million traded player exception, giving the franchise more cap space to sign free agents or make further trades this summer. Harris is in the final year of his contract and is due nearly $20 million for the 2023-2024 season. For Harris, who turns 32 in September, he gets a fresh start and an opportunity to rejuvenate his career and reestablish himself as one of the league's top three-point shooters as he joins a new team in Detroit, where he will play his 10th NBA season for a third different franchise. 

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