# Devin Harris named mavs starting pg



## droppinknowledge (Aug 4, 2004)

Point taken: Mavericks rookie Harris will start

Terry to start season on bench, but will play plenty for Mavericks


03:49 AM CST on Monday, November 1, 2004


By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News



The Mavericks believe they have a rare point guard in Devin Harris, so rare that the rookie will be in the starting lineup on opening night. 

Coach Don Nelson said Sunday he believes starting the 6-3 Harris on Tuesday agaist Sacramento is the right thing to do. It will send Jason Terry into the backup role, although Terry also will play heavy minutes. 

Mavericks/NBA
Point taken: Mavericks rookie Harris will start

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"I think he'll be our point guard here for many, many years," Nelson said. "So I think it makes us a better team, plus it's the thing to do for the future." 

Nelson almost never embraces a rookie enough to put him in the starting lineup from the start. Even Dirk Nowitzki came off the bench for half of his first season. Nelson said Tim Hardaway in Golden State was the last rookie he could remember starting for him in an opener. 

Harris, told Friday that he'd be starting, seemed underwhelmed. 

"Wow," he said, feigning surprise. "It's a good step forward. Hopefully, we can have 10 guys in our rotation and the second unit will have as much firepower as the first. But whether I start or come off the bench, I still have to play the same way." 

Harris led the NBA in steals in the preseason and his ability on defense, as well as his maturity, were the primary reasons he will start.was made the starter.


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## droppinknowledge (Aug 4, 2004)

Jason Terry isn't holding a grudge at being replaced by Devin Harris as the starting point guard for the Mavericks. 

In fact, he's ready to embrace the move. 

"Anybody who looks at the history of me, that's where I made my name," Terry said. "With my energy and leadership coming off the bench with that second group, that's going to be exactly what we need." 

Terry was a sixth man for much of his rookie season. But that was with a poor team in Atlanta, and he quickly was promoted to the starting position. When he joined the Mavericks in the Antoine Walker trade this summer, he was penciled into the starting lineup. But as Don Nelson said, pencils come with erasers. 

Mavericks/NBA
Point taken: Mavericks rookie Harris will start

Terry takes on sixth man role with optimism

Mavs Extra: A lot of fun, at all costs

Breaking down the Mavericks roster (10/31)

2004-05 NBA Preview

In NBA, it's 'I' before 'we'

Moore: This season should be anything but regular

Conference previews:
West | East

DMN staff predictions

Mavericks Forum

More Mavericks
"It's a change from what I thought I'd be doing, but I love Terry coming off the bench with [Jerry] Stackhouse," Nelson said. "And we'll bring Marquis Daniels off the bench, too." 

That means the starting lineup on Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings will be Erick Dampier, Dirk Nowitzki and Michael Finley on the front line with Josh Howard and Harris in the backcourt. 

Terry said after five losing seasons in Atlanta, he'll do anything to ensure success for the team. 

"When you have a winning team, somebody has to make a sacrifice," he said. "And that person is me. The biggest difference is we're going to be winning. I'll trade that for anything." 

Daniels likely to play: Marquis Daniels missed all eight preseason games with an ankle sprain, but coach Don Nelson expects the 6-6 swingman to be available for Tuesday's opener. 

Daniels practiced extensively Sunday. While he had his left ankle wrapped in ice afterward, he said he's made big improvement. 

"I can't do everything, but I can do a lot more than I could a week ago," Daniels said. "It's just a matter of getting a lot more strength back in my ankle. I'm trying not to aggravate it too much and trying not to baby it too much." 

Nelson said he expects to have a full complement of players for the opener, which is a little surprising given that the preseason was filled with nagging injuries. 

"He's been very good in practice," Nelson said of Daniels. "He's not even 100 percent, but I forgot how good he is." 

That sentiment was echoed by Jason Terry. 

"He's so good, it's scary," Terry said. "And he's so smooth. You don't know he's even out there." 

Briefly: This is the second year in a row that the Mavericks appear to have hit it big with rookies. Josh Howard and Marquis Daniels both were key contributors last season, and Devin Harris now has a chance to do the same. "We stayed out of the high-school pool," Michael Finley said. "The guys we've drafted had a lot of college experience. They're always a step ahead. I just hope he [Harris] doesn't think this is over as far as working hard. It gets harder." ... Dan Dickau is expected to be the third member of the injured list, joining Pavel Podkolzin and Tariq Abdul-Wahad.


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## SKiP (Jan 28, 2004)

DHarris could get ROY now. He's still going to lose some minutes to Jason Terry though. It would be good if Harris and Terry played in the same backcourt a lot so that they both get to play. Then the mavs could trade Stack away and the team wouldn't miss him. This is how the team would look without Stack...

PG - Harris / Terry / Quis
SG - Quis / Terry / Finley / Howard
SF - Finley / Howard / Dirk
PF - Dirk / Henderson / Booth
C - Damp / Mbenga / Bradley


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## SKiP (Jan 28, 2004)

This means that Harris will definitely be the rookie leader in assists.


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## Pan Mengtu (Jun 18, 2004)

Why did they say Marquis is not starting SG?


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## Ravnos (Aug 10, 2004)

I think he's not fully recovered from his injury.


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## ChristopherJ (Aug 10, 2004)

Whats going on with stackhouse?


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## droppinknowledge (Aug 4, 2004)

> Originally posted by <b>KidCanada101</b>!
> Whats going on with stackhouse?


he's playing tonight


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## -33- (Aug 6, 2002)

wow...

watched Devin run the point tonight on league pass....

he was amazing....he made Bibby look like the rookie out there...

with experience, this kid is gonna be a very good player...


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## KokoTheMonkey (Aug 4, 2003)

Yeah, Devin looked good out there tonight. 



I was most impressed with the fact that he took it to the basket with authority, instead of shying away from going in the paint.


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## Kapono2Okafor (Oct 20, 2004)

Dha did incredibly good last nite i was impressed a lot by him


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## droppinknowledge (Aug 4, 2004)

...


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