Catching Up with ex-Net Devin Harris

Devin Harris has had some track record when you think about it.

The Mavericks acquired him on draft day to replace Steve Nash. The Nets traded him for Jason Kidd. The Jazz traded him for Deron Williams.

Harris is a very good player for teams to give up the faces of their franchise for him, and he was a good player for the Nets.

He had one great season, had some health issues, and never could lead the Nets over the hump. So now he gets a shot in Utah.

Did you know Utah was in the mix?
“I did. But I didn’t know he was in the mix. I did not know that.”

You thought you were going to play with Deron?
“Yes, I thought so.”

How do you feel about always being traded for superstars?
“Yeah, and coming in and replacing Steve Nash in Dallas as well. I’ve had some great point guards before me. It’s a confidence thing knowing they wanted to me and I get to fill the shoes he left. It’s an exciting time. I’m looking forward to it.”

How do you feel about replacing Williams?
“I’ve been through it before. With a team like Utah, they’re behind their team. They have a great fan base and I think they’ll welcome me with open arms. We don’t have a lot of time to waste. We’re still fighting for a playoff spot. I think we’ve lost five in a row. We’ve got to get back on track and that’s really my focal point, my focus.”

Everyone is going to think this is you and Avery clashing. What’s the story?
“It was never a problem. Me and Avery we’ve been open and honest with each other. We both kind of agreed with me getting up there in age to get back to a situation where I get back to the playoffs. The team we had wasn’t really going to direction they wanted to go. They had to break up the team a little bit. I just asked to get back to a winning situation. That’s how it is. We’ll still talk. We talked yesterday. I wished him best of luck. He did the same. They got a great player and a friend of mine in Deron. I think both sides are happy with the outcome.”

Did you ask for a trade?
“I didn’t necessarily ask for it. It’s not something I asked for, but it’s mutually something we came to an agreement on.”

When did this happen?
“When the Denver stuff came back around.”

In January?
“No. Just recently when they got back in the mix.”