Dominick Harris Scouting Report
Shooting gravity is one of the most important intangibles of today's NBA prospect. But is it enough for Harris to land a long-term roster spot in the league? Find out more below.
In some cases it’s enough to master a specific role to earn yourself a long-term career. In Harris’ case his slashing ability, screen navigation, and consistent high-volume three-point shooting will be his most important selling points.
After transferring to Loyola Marymount, Harris emerged as one of college basketball’s best shooters, leading to his name popping up on NBA radars.
Physical Profile
At 6’4” in shoes, Harris has a well-filled frame at 190 pounds. He added 20 pounds in his four years of college. As a sophomore, he had to redshirt a season due to a foot injury, which an NBA decision-maker should keep in mind when evaluating his profile.
He has improved his upper body strength this season. Continuing to get stronger is going to be his goal moving forward. Considering his long wingspan and lateral quickness, Harris has enough tools to grow into a neutral NBA team defender.
Offense
When evaluating the jumper the consistency immediately stood out. One of the reasons why Harris is such a reliable high-volume shooter is he never has to lower the ball to under his waist to power up for the shot. With a high-arcing release, Harris’ size doesn’t stand in his way when playing as a spot-up shooter.
Another must-have for undersized guards is a quick release, which is way above average in Harris’ case. This increases his value of him as a floor-spacer at the next level. Considering he’ll have fewer ball touches in the NBA compared to college, his off-ball movement will keep the defense on their heels considering how quickly he can pull the trigger.
Due to Harris being an upperclassman, the production becomes more important when determining the value of his profile. At 44.8% on 6.0 attempts this season the consistency of his jumper is paying dividends.
When playing out of closeouts, Harris’ footwork stood out. At times Harris relies too much on creating separation with his aggressive jab step due to him not having the explosiveness to blow by defenders consistently.
Harris worked on his footwork a lot during his younger years. His execution makes that clear. His composure when picking up his dribble while still coming to a quick execution will be an area to add value to a team’s pace at the next level.
At 56.5% on his rim finishes, Harris doesn't show the same consistency near the rim as he does from three. When evaluating his film, the struggles to get downhill lead to him being more selective in when to drive to the rack and when to settle for a midrange jumper or floater.
What makes him a reliable factor as a slasher, despite not generating many rim attempts, is his ability to find looks via sudden stops on drives. At the NBA level, we see a trend of fewer midrange jumpers, making him more predictable for opposing scouting reports. Showing more consistency in getting downhill is an area of development for Harris that NBA decision-makers should keep in mind.
An important NBA value for Harris is his playing as an active cutter. What stood out is that he times his cuts very well. His focus is on his assignment’s movement and for Harris the time to launch is mostly when his opponents set their pivot foot, as seen in the first play below.
In the second play, we see his assignment being more locked into him, but the moment the opponent takes a second to look at how the play progresses, Harris launches the backdoor cut to get another look at the rim.
Cutting within the flow of the offense is something where Harris doesn't separate himself from his peers. However, when considering his creativity when offenses dry up, his feel for the game becomes much more valuable, as seen in the third play. The big man faces a packed paint after receiving the entry pass near the mid-post, whereafter Harris uses his hesitation move to shake his opponent out of balance before exploiting the driving lane in the middle of the interior.
Considering a potential low-usage role at the next level, Harris’ cutting is an important part of his NBA profile.
When looking at Harris’ long-term value, his flashes as a creator via the pick-and-roll is an important indicator. Considering Harris will turn 23 before next season’s All-Star game, the readiness of the core elements of his game is important to determine his draft value. But this doesn’t take away that an NBA team would like some untapped potential to develop themselves.
As a pick-and-roll ball handler, Harris shows he has the handles and composure to get himself the looks he forces on the defense. Unlike his off-ball game, Harris is much more confident getting downhill by utilizing ball screens and attack mismatches such as big men.
An area of development for Harris is to pass out of these sequences as well. At 1.0 assists per game against 1.9 turnovers this season, the numbers support the fact that Harris looks to finish his plays off himself. This is partially caused due to a lack of scoring creativity on Loyola Marymount’s roster, but also Harris’ habit of less involving his teammates.
With the NBA moving toward more ball movement and higher volume scoring from all positions, that’s something for Harris to work on next season.
Defense
At the next level, Harris’ consistent rotations on defense will be an important factor in keeping him on an NBA floor. As of this season, the inconsistency on this end stood out, partially due to team struggles in rotations, and partially due to Harris simply being late on the rotations on his part.
A positive is that he recognizes the needed rotations, but the execution has been inconsistent at times. The first two plays are examples of Harris having to step up in terms of coaching his teammates on the floor, which he has started doing as of late and should be consistent in taking that leadership role. With his three years of experience at Gonzaga, he brings invaluable experience his team can learn from. While evaluating his film, that’s something where Harris can grow in his role as a leader while preparing for his senior year.
The third play is an example of the ground he can cover. He’s alone on the weak side and guards the space around the high post, avoiding the pass to the open big man down low. With the elbow being wide open, the contest was impressive, mostly possible by utilizing his long wingspan. Building consistency as a team defender is key for his development.
As a point-of-attack defender, Harris’ need to continue to fill his frame and get stronger was clear. In terms of his footwork, he’s showing the right things by setting his feet quickly and correctly and being able to stay in front of players laterally.
The first play is an example where he loses balance after taking the bump. Although he quickly recovers and contests the floater, we see the same issue in the second play where Harris hits the deck while covering the driving lane. At times he can be too aggressive against drivers, as shown in the third play but it’s a testimony to his will to make winning plays on defense. While the defender was fading away, Harris overcommitted with the contact, leading to the easy whistle and potential and-one opportunity.
At 2.3 fouls in 28 minutes per game, it’s a healthy number considering his role as a perimeter-oriented role in a college game where guards carry most of the scoring load.
A value-riser in Harris’ profile is his awareness as a defender. In the latter stages of the season, he also started coaching teammates more actively as of late, which is a sign of him taking his role as a leader with his senior season around the corner. His missing the backdoor cut in the third play shows that taking too much time to help others can backfire in giving up easy buckets. Harris has to be quicker in his communication.
The first play shows good awareness as he’s rotating before the roller is hit with the pass, anticipating the play and initiating a potential quick 5-on-4 look in transition. Another positive in his profile is his ability to recognize incoming screens. In the second play, the big man sets the back screen at the level of the high post, but Harris can avoid it timely to keep up with the play, which he couldn’t keep up with after the opponent’s good execution.
Harris’ most NBA-ready skillset on defense is his ability to slide between the screener and ball handler. The consistency and aggressiveness without fouling make this the most appealing skill an NBA decision-maker will value when evaluating his profile.
In the first play, we see Harris executive his defensive read with a perfect contest near the free-throw line after sliding between the ball handler and screener and still laterally keeping this man in front of him. In the second play, his need to become stronger and continue to fill his frame becomes more visible, allowing the and-one after not being able to keep his balance after the bump.
Combined with his great awareness, Harris becomes a threat to impact passing lanes as well. In the third play, he’s guarding the upper wing and stands out as he’s keeping his man in a straight line in front of him to avoid the backdoor cut and keeps track of the play as the off-ball defender. The flashes Harris is showing on this end are enough to grow into a reliable team defender at the NBA level.
While we see the NBA run more sets involving handoffs in the plays above, Harris also shows consistency in guarding against pick-and-roll schemes. His screen navigation is at a high level as he doesn’t allow ball handlers to create separation while utilizing ball screens.
In the second play below he draws the offensive foul even with the screener setting the high ball screen closer to the ball handler than an average screen. Opponent scouting reports matter most in conference play, and the Saint Mary’s coaching staff respected Harris’ gravity as a pick-and-roll defender.
The third play is an example of what Harris can face in a switch-heavy NBA game. While the opponent looked like using the high double-drag screens to open the driving lane for the ball handler, Harris pushed them to the weak side, forcing the contested midrange jumper; a shot that a defense is willing to give up. His feel for the game as a pick-and-roll defender is another value-riser in Harris’ profile.
NBA Draft Projection
Harris makes sense for shooting-heavy NBA teams that look to add depth to their roster. His status as one of the most consistent high-volume three-point shooters in the country is what’ll make Harris draw NBA attention.
The lack of rim presence without utilizing ball screens is an early concern in his profile. His midrange-heavy scoring when operating inside the arc is something that Harris has to replace by generating rim looks or making the extra pass. At 1.0 assists per game, the lack of involving his teammates is another area that the NBA decision-makers should keep in mind.
On the defensive end, the screen navigation and decision-making are value-risers. Teams that struggle to maintain their defensive rating with their second unit will value his skillset on this end. In the long run, Harris has to become stronger to be able to fully bank on his screen navigation and feel for the game as a pick-and-roll defender.
With the level of guards that are currently playing G League basketball, Harris should consider returning to college basketball for one more season. An NBA team with the need for shooting depth has a less-filled 2024 draft class to choose from, which opens up room for Harris for this year. But the lack of strength and missed time due to injuries are the value-droppers that might be held against him.
Instead, I expect Harris to return for his senior year in a higher-ranked conference to continue to showcase the feasibility of his three-point shooting and reliable team defense. Therefore, I expect him to be a favorite among two-way candidates as an undrafted free agent after the 2025 NBA Draft.