Gary Harris (born September 14, 1994) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who last played for the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...

High school career

Harris attended Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, Indiana. As a sophomore in 2009–10, he averaged 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals per game as he led Hamilton SE to a 17–4 record. As a junior in 2010–11, he averaged 18.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.7 steals per game as he led the Royals to a 20–4 record and a trip to the Class 4A regional finals, capturing just the second sectional championship in school history. In November 2011, Harris signed a

National Letter of Intent The National Letter of Intent (NLI) is a document used to indicate a student athlete's commitment to participating in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) colleges and universities in the United States. The NCAA Eligibility Center manag ...

to play

for

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

. As a senior in 2011–12, Harris averaged 25.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 4.0 steals per game as he led the Royals to a 22–3 record, advancing to the Class 4A sectional final. He finished his high school career with a school-record 1,540 points (16.7 ppg), 467 rebounds (5.1 rpg), 232 assists (2.5 apg) and 232 steals (2.5 spg). Harris was rated among the top players in the nation by ESPNU100 (No. 11), Scout.com (No. 16) and Rivals.com (No. 25). He was also ranked among the nation's top

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

s by ESPNU100 (No. 2), Scout.com (No. 4) and Rivals.com (No. 7). Harris was also an outstanding football player at Hamilton SE, playing wide receiver in his sophomore, junior and senior years. He won three league championships, while also adding a sectional championship as a senior.

College career

As a freshman at

in 2012–13, Harris was named the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

Freshman of the Year, becoming the first Spartan to win the award since 1986. He was also a second-team All-Big Ten selection and a Big Ten All-Freshman Team honoree. In 34 games (33 starts), he averaged 12.9 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals in 29.7 minutes per game. As a sophomore in 2013–14, Harris earned first-team All-Big Ten, All-Big Ten Defensive Team, USBWA All-District selection, first-team NABC All-District, and an honorable mention Associated Press All-American honors. In the season-opener against McNeese State, he recorded his first career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. On January 25, 2014, he recorded a career-high 27 points against

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. In 35 games, he averaged 16.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.3 minutes per game. On April 14, 2014, Harris declared for the

NBA draft The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...

, forgoing his final two years of college eligibility.

Professional career

Denver Nuggets (2014–2021)

On June 26, 2014, Harris was selected with the 19th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

. He was later traded to the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

on draft night along with Jusuf Nurkić (16th pick) and a second-round pick for Doug McDermott (11th pick) and Anthony Randolph. On July 31, he signed his rookie-scale contract with the Nuggets after averaging 18.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 2.0 assists in five Summer League games for the team. After missing the first seven games of the 2014–15 season due to a back injury, Harris made his NBA debut on November 14 against the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. In 18 minutes of action, he recorded 13 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block in a 108–87 win. He did not manage to eclipse that scoring total for the rest of the season, tying his season high of 13 points in the second-last game of the season against the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

. In July 2015, Harris re-joined the Nuggets for the

2015 NBA Summer League The 2015 NBA Summer League consisted of three professional sports, pro basketball sports league, leagues organized by the National Basketball Association, NBA: the Orlando Magic, Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas S ...

. On October 11, the Nuggets exercised their third-year team option on Harris's rookie-scale contract, extending the contract through the 2016–17 season. He earned the Nuggets' starting shooting guard spot for the 2015–16 season, going on to score a then career-high 20 points on November 20 in a loss to the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

. Harris missed a string of six games between November 28 and December 8 due to a concussion he suffered against the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

on November 27. He returned to action on December 11 against the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

, starting in his 17th game of the season and scoring 12 points in a 111–108 win. In the following game on December 14, Harris scored a career-high 21 points in a 114–108 win over the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

. He tied that career high on December 22, scoring 21 points in a loss to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. Harris had another 21-point effort on March 4, 2016, in an overtime loss to the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

. In 2015–16, Harris was just one of seven players to average 12-plus points, shoot 47% from the field, 35% from three, and 81% from the free throw line. During the 2016 off-season, he was part of the USA Men's Select Team, a team selected to train with the USA Basketball Men's National Team in preparation for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. In July 2016, Harris re-joined the Nuggets for the 2016 NBA Summer League. On October 5, 2016, he was ruled out for four to six weeks with a partially torn right groin. On October 21, the Nuggets exercised their fourth-year team option on Harris's rookie-scale contract, extending the contract through the 2017–18 season. He missed the first four games of the 2016–17 season with the groin injury, but upon returning to action in early November, he sustained a foot injury after just five games. He was subsequently sidelined for up to four weeks. In his first game back on December 15 after missing 16 straight, Harris scored 18 points in a 132–120 win over the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

. Four days later, he scored a career-high 24 points in a 117–107 win over the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

. On February 24, 2017, he set a new career high with 25 points in a 129–109 win over the

. He bested that mark on March 8, 2017, scoring 26 points in a 123–113 loss to the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

. On March 20, 2017, he set a new career high with 28 points in a 125–124 loss to the

. On October 12, 2017, Harris signed a four-year, $84 million contract extension with the Nuggets. On December 13, 2017, he scored a career-high 36 points in a 124–118 loss to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

. On January 3, 2018, he scored 28 of his 36 points in the first half of the Nuggets' 134–111 win over the

. On February 1, 2018, he made the winning three-pointer at the buzzer and finished with 25 points to lift the Nuggets to a 127–124 victory over the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

. On April 9, 2018, Harris returned from an 11-game absence to score 12 points off the bench in an 88–82 win over the

. Harris missed 11 games in December due to a right hip injury, and five games in January with hamstring tightness. He later missed seven games with a right adductor strain.

Orlando Magic (2021–2025)

On March 25, 2021, Harris, R. J. Hampton and a future first-round pick were traded to the

in exchange for Aaron Gordon and Gary Clark. On June 30, 2022, Harris signed a two-year, $26 million contract extension with the Magic. On August 27, Harris underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. On December 29, he was suspended by the NBA for one game without pay due to coming off the bench during an altercation in a game against the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

the day before. On July 6, 2024, Harris signed a new two-year contract, $14 million deal with the Magic.

Free agency (2025–present)

On July 16, 2025, it was reported that the Magic had declined a team option that would have extended Harris' contract, rendering him a free agent.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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, 76 , , 76 , , 32.1 , , .469 , , .354 , , .820 , , 2.9 , , 1.9 , , 1.3 , , .2 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 57 , , 56 , , 31.3 , , .503 , , .420 , , .776 , , 3.1 , , 2.9 , , 1.2 , , .1 , , 14.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 67 , , 65 , , 34.4 , , .485 , , .396 , , .827 , , 2.6 , , 2.9 , , 1.8 , , .2 , , 17.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 57 , , 48 , , 28.8 , , .424 , , .339 , , .799 , , 2.8 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 12.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 19 , , 19 , , 30.6 , , .442 , , .320 , , .733 , , 2.5 , , 1.7 , , .9 , , .2 , , 9.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 61 , , 30 , , 28.4 , , .434 , , .384 , , .874 , , 2.0 , , 1.8 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 48 , , 42 , , 24.7 , , .450 , , .431 , , .900 , , 2.0 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , .3 , , 8.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 54 , , 27 , , 24.0 , , .441 , , .371 , , .756 , , 1.7 , , 1.6 , , .9 , , .3 , , 6.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 570 , , 443 , , 28.0 , , .447 , , .370 , , .813 , , 2.4 , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 11.0

Playoffs

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, 6 , , 6 , , 26.5 , , .286 , , .318 , , 1.000 , , 2.0 , , .7 , , 1.2 , , .5 , , 4.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 34 , , 32 , , 31.0 , , .417 , , .351 , , .839 , , 2.9 , , 1.8 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , 9.6

Awards and honors

*2012 Indiana Mr. Basketball *2012 Jordan Brand Classic game invitee *2012 Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year *2012 Indiana All-Star *2012 Indiana-Kentucky All-Star series MVP *2012 First-team ''Parade'' All-American *2011 Indiana Junior All-Star *2011 All-Hoosier Cross Roads Conference *2011 Indianapolis Star First Team honoree *2011 Hamilton County Player of the Year *2011 Hoosier Basketball Magazine All-State selection

Personal life

Harris is the son of Gary and Joy Harris (née Holmes). His mother played

for the

Purdue Boilermakers The Purdue Boilermakers are the official college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams representing Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana. As is common with athletic nicknames, the Boilermakers nickname ...

and professionally in the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. The WNBA w ...

(WNBA) for the

Detroit Shock The Detroit Shock were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. They were the 2003, 2006, and 2008 WNBA champions. Debuting in 1998, the Shock were one of the league's first expansion franchises. Th ...

References

External links

Michigan State Spartans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Gary 1994 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Chicago Bulls draft picks Denver Nuggets players McDonald's High School All-Americans Michigan State Spartans men's basketball players Orlando Magic players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Sportspeople from Fishers, Indiana Basketball players from Hamilton County, Indiana Shooting guards