The Latest Intel About Gary Harris

The 27-year-old two-way wing's averaging 11.4 points per game and converting 38 percent of the five threes he's hoisting per contest while playing on an expiring contract for a Magic team at the bottom of the NBA standings.

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Due to the Orlando Magic residing at the bottom of the NBA standings and Gary Harris playing on an expiring contract, there's been a considerable amount of chatter about the possibility he gets bought out and helps solidify a contending team's rotation.

This season, the 27-year-old two-way wing's generating 11.4 points per game while converting 38 percent of the five threes he's hoisting per contest. The Magic acquired Harris, R.J. Hampton, and a first-round draft pick at last year's trade deadline in a deal that sent Aaron Gordon to the Nuggets as part of a youth movement. Going from a contending team in Denver to one embarking on a rebuild in Orland has brought down his defensive metrics, but he's still an effective perimeter defender.

Harris is also a team leader, mentoring the likes of Cole Anthony, who's in the midst of a breakout sophomore season, averaging 17.7 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.8 rebounds per game, last year's fifth overall pick Jalen Suggs, and Hampton.

Harris is enjoying his time in Orlando, and the Magic are happy to have him, so despite being a natural candidate to get bought out of his contract, that may not happen, per veteran NBA insider Marc Stein, whose valuable insights reside at marcstein.substack.com.

There’s really been no discussion there to this point. He hasn’t really pushed to move on. And if he doesn’t push to move on, I think the Magic would be happy to finish out the season with him.

Adding Harris would be a significant boon to a Celtics' rotation that, for the most part, only features three players off the bench, Derrick White, Grant Williams, and Daniel Theis. However, even if Harris reaches the buyout market, he would draw significant interest from contenders around the league, so it's far from a safe bet that he would be Boston bound.

It's also worth noting if a player gets waived, it must happen by Mar. 1 for them to remain playoff eligible.

Further Reading

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Coach Krzyzewski's Message to Danny Ainge, Brad Stevens When Celtics Were Deciding Whether to Draft Jayson Tatum

Celtics Sign Sam Hauser, Luke Kornet to Standard Contracts, Can Now Add Players Via 10-Day Deals

Brad Stevens Addresses Celtics' Motivations at the Deadline: 'We want to maintain the stretch we're on, but this is about the long-term'

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