Detroit Pistons: Will Joe Harris be more than a financial move?

The Detroit Pistons spent most of their cap space to take on the expiring contract of Joe Harris as their “big move” of the offseason so far.

Try to contain your excitement.

Financially, the Harris trade makes sense, as Detroit clearly wasn’t comfortable (or able) going into big-time money or years for any of the available free agents fans were hoping to see come to the Motor City.

It seems like the Pistons should have gotten more for $20 million that the Nets needed to clear to be able to retain Cam Johnson, but Detroit did pick up a big expiring contract of a guy who is still one of the best 3-point shooters in the league, got two second-round picks, and didn’t have to give up anything but cap space to get it.

If that expiring contract is eventually used in a big trade, then it will make perfect financial sense that the Pistons took it on, but aside from that possibility, will Joe Harris actually help the team on the court?

Detroit Pistons: Will Joe Harris be more than a financial move?

Whether Joe Harris will actually help the young Pistons improve on the court is an important question, as a strong season could make his expiring contract worth even more.

Harris averaged 7.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 20 minutes per game last season for the Nets, hardly inspiring numbers for a guy cashing a $20 million check. He did play in 74 games (an Iron Man by recent Pistons’ standards) and the 31-year-old had some nice games off the bench for the Nets.

He scored a season-high 18 points on four different occasions (once against Detroit) and hit double digits off the bench 25 times this past season, so Harris can still be a solid offensive contributor at times and can still get hot and go off like he did this past season against the Bulls:

Of course, there were a whole lot of games where he scored three points, five points or none at all. It really all came down to shot attempts. Harris is a career 44 percent 3-point shooter, so he’s going to make around half of the long-range shots that he gets.

The question is whether he can do enough of anything else to stay on the court long enough to get those attempts. Harris’ defense, while not as bad as some say, is not good, and the idea of having him and Bojan Bogdanovic on the court at the same time is frightening.

Monty Williams will have to deploy him strategically in lineups where he isn’t stuck defending the other team’s best backup wing player (Ausar Thompson to the rescue!) and where the space he creates with his shooting can benefit whatever guards are on the floor.

So the short answer is yes, Joe Harris will help the Detroit Pistons in some ways, but as an 8th or 9th guy, not someone who is going to make an enormous impact. The best thing Harris can do for the Pistons is to stay healthy, knock down the shots he gets and be prepared to be traded at the deadline if the right deal comes along.