Joe Harris’ struggles make not having Kyrie Irving on the court 1000x worse for Brooklyn

Having a hobbled James Harden definitely hurts the Nets, as does having Kyrie Irving out with a sprained ankle, but having Joe Harris give them nothing offensively is killing them in this series! Kevin Durant could very well go out in Game 7 and have another magnificent performance, but he alone cannot win the Nets this series. 

In Game 5, Durant had 49 points, but Jeff Green was that “second-guy” for them, scoring 27 points on 7-8 shooting from deep. Joe Harris needs to be that guy for Brooklyn, but since scoring 19 points in Game 1 of this series, he has disappeared. 

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Harris is still seeing 30+ minutes per game, as the Nets need him to be on the court, but offensively, he has been as good as useless and was not much of a factor again in Game 6. Joe Harris shot 4-9 from the floor in this game, making 1 of his 4 three-point attempts, and scored 9 points. 

For a guy who ranked first in the NBA in three-point shooting percentage during the regular season at 47.5%, he looks completely rattled in this series and has really struggled, shooting just 32.5% from deep.  

If Joe Harris can come into Game 7 and start knocking down some shots early on, then not only can he give Brooklyn an early lead, but he can get his confidence back to become a threat. Right now, the Bucks look at every possession in which Durant does not shoot as a win, which is why Harris needs to prove that he can be a true threat from the perimeter with his team’s backs up against the wall.