Jalen Harris Says He's Looking Forward to Developing with the Raptors this Summer
It's been a pretty crazy rookie season for Toronto Raptors second-round pick Jalen Harris.
It was just a few months ago in training camp that Harris showed up at the Raptors' facility for the first time and head coach Nick Nurse pulled him aside to tell him he probably wasn't going to play very much this year. It was the simple fact of being on a roster loaded with guard talent. Nurse looked at his situation, behind Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Malachi Flynn, DeAndre' Bembry, and former guard Norman Powell, and didn't see a place for Harris outside of the G-League.
Well, five months later, Harris has averaged 27 minutes in Toronto's last three games and he recorded his first NBA start on Thursday against the Chicago Bulls. While it may not be under normal circumstances consider the Raptors have shifted into a more developmental strategy these days, it's still been an impressive little stretch for the 22-year-old guard.
"I mean he's a scoring guard, he's got a little bit of handle, and combo in him," Nurse said Thursday. "We need him defensively. Use that athleticism because he's got a bunch, he's fast and he can move side to side and quick and can jump, all those things. So he needs to make sure he puts it to good use on the defensive end and take the right shots on offence with limiting turnovers."
While Harris has shown some ball-handling skills lately, he's dealt with some turnover trouble, coughing up the ball nine times in the last three games.
This summer should be Harris' first big opportunity to get incorporated into Toronto's developmental system. His G-League season was cut short both because of the COVID-19 pandemic and some injuries, and last year's offseason was basically non-existent. Now, with no playoffs this year and the pandemic, hopefully, winding down, Harris should be able to really get to work fine-tuning his game for the first time with the Raptors
"I'm looking forward to that more than anything," Harris said, "building that chemistry and continuing to build on what we've got now."
Next year things could look a little different when Harris shows up at training camp. VanVleet and Flynn will certainly be back in the fold and Gary Trent Jr. should be back once his restricted free agency is dealt with, but Kyle Lowry's free agency is still up in the air and the rest of Toronto's depth is either heading to free agency this summer or is on non-guaranteed deals for next year.
Further Reading
Stanley Johnson stars in a possible audition for another NBA contract
Nick Nurse won't say if Kyle Lowry will play again this season
Malachi Flynn shows off his Kyle Lowry-esque instincts vs. Clippers
