Harris signed with the Spurs this offseason to chase a championship, and one week of training camp with Wembanyama has not toned down the sales pitch.
“He’s going to be a phenomenal player. He’s going to have a phenomenal year. I mean, he’s the most talented player in the NBA. I have not seen a guy work as hard as he works,” Harris told reporters on 28 September.
The veteran forward is entering his 16th NBA season after joining San Antonio from the Detroit Pistons. He laid out his motivation bluntly at media day: “I only have one goal here, and that is to win. Whatever opportunity or role is presented is the one I’m going to make the best of.”
Harris walks into a locker room that got closer to a title than any Spurs team in more than a decade. San Antonio took the Oklahoma City Thunder to seven games in the Western Conference finals before losing to the New York Knicks four games to one in the Finals, Wembanyama’s first.
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Wembanyama was unanimously named Western Conference Finals MVP, averaging 27.3 points, 10.9 rebounds and 2.7 blocks across the series.
Harris then layered the praise with the detail that explains the fit.
“He’s one of the hardest workers that I’ve seen in this game. He’s such a student of the game, an intelligent player, and very responsive to any type of feedback on the game. Very great to be around; I haven’t been around him too long, but I’m looking forward to getting out there and going to battle with him.”
Calf strain sidelines Harris
The partnership is now paused before it has really begun. The Spurs announced on 4 October that Harris had sustained a left calf strain in training camp and would miss the Silver and Black intrasquad scrimmage along with the entire preseason.
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Head coach Mitch Johnson said San Antonio will not rush the forward back.
“It’s a calf strain, the seriousness is what it is. We won’t rush him at all. Totally questionable and we will not push that at all,” Johnson said.
Harris will be re-evaluated after the Spurs’ preseason schedule finishes on 16 October. He remains questionable for the regular-season opener against the Thunder on 20 October.
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