Joe Harris: ‘I didn’t necessarily give a ton of thought’ to leaving Brooklyn in free agency

Earning a big payday means a lot to Joe Harris, but not simply because it’s going to help his bank account.

Four hours after NBA free agency began, Priority Sports, the agency that represents Joe Harris, announced the sharpshooter had agreed to terms on a new deal with the Nets.

Reports leading up to free agency indicated Harris had other options outside of Brooklyn, but he never really had any intention of leaving.

“I narrowed in with the Nets. Obviously, just with the NBA’s rules you’re not necessarily allowed a lot of time to speak with these teams,” Harris said on a Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday. “You’re only allowed to talk, obviously, the day that free agency started at 6 p.m. But I was allowed to have dialogue with the team [I’m] currently with, so obviously I’ve been talking to Sean [Marks], Steve [Nash], my teammates, those guys, a lot in the lead-up. I didn’t necessarily give a ton of thought of leaving.

“Obviously, you still take your self-interests as a No. 1 priority, so you have to entertain other options. But, at the end of the day, my No. 1 priority was to try and come back to Brooklyn.”

It also didn’t hurt that Harris’ deal was reportedly worth over $70 million.

But, for Harris, there’s more to receiving a major offer from a title contender than the money itself.

 

“It means a lot,” he said. “I think everybody in the league, we all have different paths of making it. At the end of the day, regardless of the money, it’s just about solidifying yourself as a player in this league, earning the respect of your peers [and] your teammates. That’s just been the goal all along, and I think you’re fortunate because I think the money is a byproduct of that.”