Georgetown Basketball: 3 reasons why Dante Harris should play more
Dealing with pressure
If you had the opportunity to check out Arkansas Basketball any time between 2011-19, you should know that their harassing defense is what made them so popular. Before Mike Anderson (the current St. John’s head coach) was fired after the 2018-19 season, the Razorbacks would commit to applying full-court pressure on their opponents for 40 minutes, and try to make them turn the ball over as much as possible.
Anderson’s defensive scheme has not changed since he arrived at St. John’s, as he encourages his guards to pick up the opposing team’s guards full-court and give them no room to breathe whatsoever. Dante Harris got to experience this first-hand on Sunday, and in my opinion, he did a pretty good of handling the ball under the Red Storm’s heavy/intense pressure.
Jahvon Blair was responsible for taking the ball up the floor sometimes against St. Johns, but Dante Harris was also responsible for protecting the ball as he was being defended 94 feet from the basket.
Did Dante Harris turn the ball over at all on Sunday? Yes (3 times to be exact), but Harris turned it over trying to make plays that would benefit his team. In other words, after getting across half-court, Harris would try to attack the basket and either make a play for himself, or for one of his teammates, but was unsuccessful. I don’t know about you, but if I was a coach, I wouldn’t have many problems with a freshman guard turning the ball over while intending to help the team score points.
It was very encouraging to see that Dante Harris comprehended that less was better against St. John’s pressure because things could have gotten ugly on Sunday. If Dante Harris had elected to repeatedly execute meaningless side to side crossovers, when St John’s guards had yet to cut him off yet, he would have surrendered the ball numerous times in the backcourt.
Luckily for Patrick Ewing and the Hoyas, Dante Harris made sure that he kept the ball in one hand, until St. John’s guards stopped him in his tracks, and left him no choice but to crossover to the other side.
When it comes to Jalen Harris, well, his turnovers this season have been inexcusable. Against West Virginia or “press Virginia” if you wish to call them that, Jalen Harris’ inability to make quick and decisive decisions plagued him in that contest because the Mountaineers picked up on the fact that he was rattled by their pressure (and they forced him to make mistakes).
Instead of staying calm and figuring out the best ways to attack West Virginia’s pressure, Jalen Harris would panic and travel (or make a bad pass), without even giving himself a chance to make a good read.
This also occurred against Villanova two games later, when Jalen Harris committed 4 costly turnovers (while not attempting to be aggressive when the Wildcats turned up the heat), which helped the Wildcats fight their way back into the game (after trailing by double-digits), and ultimately win it.
Obviously, turnovers are never good, but if you turn the ball over while trying to make something positive happen for your team (perhaps when no one else wants to do it), a coach will definitely be able to work with you.
I think that because Dante Harris doesn’t turn the ball over frequently, and has the right idea when he does turn it over, he is a guy that Patrick Ewing should trust a lot more right now. Sure, Ewing may disagree with that statement, but he should at least realize that the composure that Dante Harris exhibited under pressure on Sunday, was extremely impressive for a first-year guard.