Utah Jazz: Devin Harris feeling more comfortable

SALT LAKE CITY — Despite not scoring and playing less than a half due to an injury Tuesday night against Milwaukee, Utah point guard Devin Harris said he's getting more comfortable with the Jazz offense as he begins his second year with the team.

Harris came to Utah late last season via a trade with New Jersey in exchange for longtime Jazz point guard Deron Williams. He showed flashes the rest of the season and better things were expected of him this year.

After getting just 14 assists total in the first four Jazz games, while shooting 39.4 percent from the field, Harris looked much better in the two home games this week, before leaving Tuesday's game with a calf injury.

In the win over New Orleans Monday night, the former Wisconsin guard scored 19 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range and the go-ahead basket, while dishing out five assists.

Then, despite missing his only two shots in the first half against Milwaukee, he had his best passing night of the season, handing out six assists in just 17 minutes, tying his season high.

"The more time I spend with these guys on the court, the more comfortable I'll be," Harris said. "You see the progression of our offense and the ball's really moving now. The assist numbers are going up and that's going to continue to get better as the year goes along."

Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin has noticed an improvement in Harris' game as the year has progressed.

"He's done a better job of understanding how to push the ball down the floor early, reading his big guys and the guys running the wing," Corbin said. "He's getting it down early so we can get more time in our half-court set. Defensively, he's doing a better job of meeting the point guard early and antagonizing him before he gets into a sweet spot to make passes to his teammates."

As for that calf injury, Harris said it was feeling much better Wednesday morning at practice and that he'd play Friday.

"It feels better and I don't expect to miss any time," he said. "We've got good trainers here."

KISS 'EM BETTER: Harris isn't the only Jazz player hobbled by an injury.

Josh Howard left Tuesday's game after just four minutes with a quad injury and he is "day-to-day," according to the Jazz. Also, Al Jefferson has had problems with cramping and Paul Millsap is still not 100 percent with his banged-up knee.

Corbin said he hopes all the players will be healthy for Friday night's game against Memphis.