After a notable 10-year run in the NBA, Joe Harris has decided to step away from the game. The Brooklyn Nets, where Harris spent the majority of his career, officially announced his retirement, celebrating his contributions to the team and the league. Harris will be remembered as one of the most precise 3-point shooters in NBA history, boasting an impressive 43.5% shooting accuracy from beyond the arc, ranking him fifth all-time in 3-point percentage.
Over his career, Harris averaged 10.3 points and three rebounds per game, shooting a solid 47.9% from the field. His journey to the NBA began in 2014 when he was selected 33rd overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Draft, following a standout collegiate career at the University of Virginia. During his time at Virginia, Harris was a two-time All-ACC selection, earned a spot on the All-ACC Tournament team in 2014, and was named the ACC Tournament MVP in his senior year. That season, he played a pivotal role in leading Virginia to a 30-7 record, securing the ACC Conference championship, and reaching the Sweet Sixteen as a No. 1 seed before falling to Michigan State.
Harris’s early NBA career was marked by limited opportunities with the Cavaliers, where he struggled to find his footing in his first two seasons. He was eventually traded to the Orlando Magic in 2016, but never played a minute for the team, as he was waived the same day he was traded. After spending the remainder of the 2015-16 season unsigned, Harris found a new home with the Brooklyn Nets during the 2016 offseason.
With the Nets, Joe Harris career took off. He quickly established himself as a key contributor off the bench, averaging 22 minutes per game in his first season with the team. By his third season, Harris had secured a spot in the starting lineup, where he averaged 13.7 points per game and led the NBA in 3-point shooting with a 47.4% accuracy rate. He continued to excel as a starter for the next two seasons, consistently ranking among the league’s top shooters. In the 2020-21 season, Harris once again led the league in 3-point shooting, averaging 14.1 points per game on a Brooklyn team that narrowly missed a trip to the Eastern Conference finals, playing alongside stars like Kevin Durant and James Harden.
However, the following season was marred by injuries, as Harris was limited to just 14 games due to two ankle surgeries. He returned the next year and continued to display his elite shooting skills, but with the Nets entering a rebuilding phase following the departures of Durant, Harden, and Kyrie Irving, Harris was traded to the Detroit Pistons in July 2023. Unfortunately, his time in Detroit was short-lived, as he appeared in only 16 games before being sidelined by a shoulder sprain and ultimately waived by the team at the trade deadline.
Despite the injuries that shortened the latter part of his career, Joe Harris remains one of the premier 3-point shooters of his era. He even claimed victory in the Three-Point Contest during the 2019 All-Star Weekend and was a key starter for several playoff-bound Nets teams. At just 32 years old, Harris likely had the potential to continue playing for several more years, but it seems he’s content with his accomplishments and ready to move on from the NBA.
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