Dallas Mavericks: Devin Harris The X-Factor Again? (Video)

We wrap up our 3-part series on the Dallas Mavericks’ point guards by taking a look at the two-time Mav and all-around good guy, Devin Harris.

Here’s what I know: If it wasn’t for Devin Harris giving the San Antonio Spurs fits in the playoffs, the Dallas Mavericks may have not had the chance they had in that first-round series.

In a series where Monta Ellis had to take over the scoring load because Dirk Nowitzki was struggling, Dallas needed someone unexpected to provide a lift.

More from Dallas Mavericks

That came with Harris. His speed, ability to attack the basket and score from anywhere on the floor gave San Antonio problems. If not for him, Dallas wouldn’t have been in the position to win that series, and Dallas probably wouldn’t have rewarded Harris with the four-year, $16.5 million deal he received this summer.

And that’s probably why he’s going to be the Mavs’ X-Factor, once again, this season.

But first, as we’ve done the first two parts in this series, a little breakdown on the one-time All-Star out of Wisconsin.

The 2003-04 season was underwhelming, to say the least, for the Mavs. With a roster that was projected to break the scoreboard, Dallas finished 52-30 and was ousted in the first round of the playoffs. Dallas was looking for change, and got it on a draft-day trade in 2004 with the Washington Wizards.

The Wizards sent Jerry Stackhouse, the greatest player of all time in Christian Laettner, and the fifthoverall pick for Antawn Jamison. That fifth pick became Devin Harris, who would become Dallas’ point guard of the future after Steve Nash signed in Phoenix.

As the years progressed, Harris got better. His points increased in his first three-plus years in Dallas, and then the Mavs decided to trade Harris and a slew of others to the Brooklyn Nets to bring back some guy to Dallas named Jason Kidd.

It sort of worked out for both parties. Dallas eventually won a championship three years after trading for J-Kidd, and Harris was an All-Star in his first year in New Jersey. But injuries derailed Harris’ All-Star production. He was still an effective scorer, but never finished a full 82-game season; the most he’s ever played is 76 in his rookie year.

After being traded to Utah for Dallas native Deron Williams in 2010-11, it appeared to be the end of Harris’ run as a really good point guard. He couldn’t stay healthy in Utah nor Atlanta, and the Mavs knew that, but still wanted him back on the roster for the 2014 season.

Now 31 years old, he’s not the young kid who had a one-dimensional game on offense during his first stint in Dallas. He’s a veteran point guard who’s quick, can hit a decent 3-point shot and can defend with the fastest of point guards in the Western Conference.

Harris missed the first 42 games of the year for Dallas last season, and the Mavs needed a spark from the backup point guard position. It took three games to show the old flashes, but then he started scoring in double figures and becoming a constant threat on both ends of the floor.

When he returned to the lineup in January, Harris had to get acclimated with a lot of faces he hadn’t played with before. But instantly, there was one guy who clicked with Harris, especially on the pick-and-roll.

I’m not sure how, and it’s quite difficult to understand. But when Brandan Wright is on the floor with Harris, it’s alley-oops galore. They read each other really well. It helps to have a guy like Wright with a 7-foot-5 wingspan who can catch anything thrown his way.

But it’s different when Harris and Wright are on the floor. They led the second unit late last year, and it proved to be effective. They’re more than likely going to be the two leading the Mavs’ bench again this year. Up until the end of the year, that appeared to be the Mavs’ secret play.

And then you get to the playoffs against San Antonio, and Dallas saw Harris was more than just a point guard to lead a bench. He’s the difference maker. All you need to do is watch Game 1.

It was at this moment where Harris looked more comfortable with his jumper for the first time since his first full year in New Jersey. He was coming off pick-and-rolls with confidence, nailing 17-foot jumpers, and then that spin-move jumper over Tony Parker was insane.

The hope is that his jumper won’t cool off. Take a look at his shot chart from last year.

Devin Harris shot chart /

A lot of blue there. That tends to happen when playing only less than half a season, then being asked to play a crucial role in the playoffs. But that 3-point shooting on the left wing is Harris’ sweet spot. Expect a lot of instances where Harris is trailing on a fast break, and he’ll be camping at the right wing towards the corner.

Quick backtrack towards the playoffs, though.

Those 19 points in Game 1 carried over to Game 2, in which he had 18 off the bench. He was the reason why the Mavs were close in those games against San Antonio. Which is why I’m surprised that Rick Carlisle wants to go with Jameer Nelson as the starter, especially after the Mavs paid Harris more than Nelson and committed to him longer.

Carlisle’s reasoning makes sense, though, via ESPN Dallas‘ Tim MacMahon:

"“When we were recruiting him this summer, I told him we were looking for the best guy to be a starter for us,” Carlisle said of Nelson. “I really like Harris off the bench. That said, I think Harris is one of our three or four best players. But we’ve had a history here of bringing some of our better guys off the bench.“At this point, Devin and I have talked about it and continue to talk about it. He’s willing to do anything. He wants to be a Maverick and wants to win.”"

Back in August, I highlighted my reasoning as to why I thought Devin should be the starting point guard come this year. Simply because he deserved it. He gave Dallas a puncher’s chance. And, also, I thought he was the better point guard.

But if Carlisle is going the approach of bringing Harris off the bench as Dallas’ sixth man, then I have no complaints. It’s Jameer Nelson’s job to lose, and if he doesn’t play well enough to maintain the starting role, Harris won’t be that far behind him.

He’s a different point guard than what he was in Dallas his first time around, not just because of his age. Devin Harris is a smarter basketball player than when he was a kid in Dallas.

Now, he’s going to be one of the veterans relied upon to help carry Dallas towards a deep postseason run.

Home/Dallas Mavericks