Purdue Basketball: Welcome Back, Sophomore Guard Gicarri Harris

Throughout the offseason, Purdue Boilermakers on SI will highlight members of the 2025-26 Purdue men's basketball roster as part of a "Welcome Back/Welcome Aboard" series. This series will focus on recaps from the 2024-25 campaign and look ahead to the upcoming season.

Today's featured player is sophomore guard Gicarri Harris, who began the year as a starter before shifting to an important bench role for the Boilermakers.

Gicarri Harris's 2024-25 season

Harris began his freshman season as a starter for the first five games of Purdue's season. As Matt Painter switched up the lineup, it was decided that the Atlanta native was best suited to come off the bench and provide a spark.

Early in the year, Harris struggled with his shot, especially from three-point range. He connected on only five of his first 29 attempts from deep (17.2%), but started to settle in after that. The freshman ended the season connecting on 31% of his shots behind the three-point line, a steady number, but still room for improvement.

During those shooting struggles, Harris still impacted games. With a 6-foot-3, 200-pound frame, he provided great defensive effort around the perimeter and wasn't muscled around by other guards in the league. He also gave Purdue an additional ball handler on the court when defenses would attempt to pressure the Boilermakers. He was a great outlet for Braden Smith when teams tried to double-team the Big Ten Player of the Year.

Harris had some of his top performances late in the year. He had nine points, three rebounds, and a critical block in Purdue's win over Indiana at Mackey Arena. The freshman guard dropped a career-high 11 points on Rutgers in a 100-71 victory on Senior Day. In the first two NCAA Tournament games, he scored six points and collected 13 rebounds in wins over High Point and McNeese.

Although Harris' freshman season started a bit bumpy, he acclimated himself to the college game by the end of the year and provided energy off the bench for the Boilermakers.

Harris always embraced his role

Going from a starter to a bench player after five games could feel like a punch to the gut for most freshmen. Perhaps Harris had similar feelings, but he never allowed those emotions to impact his performance on the court.

In true Purdue fashion, Harris accepted and embraced his new role with the Boilermakers, realizing that his contributions off the bench would help his team more than in a starting position.

"Yeah, he's a winner," Painter said of Harris in November, referencing his move from starter to bench player. "He led his (high school) team to a state title last year, and sometimes he had to score a lot, sometimes he had to playmake, sometimes a little bit of both. He's great. He was fine with it."

It's no secret that Painter recruits players who value winning and are willing to make individual sacrifices to win basketball games. Harris's willingness to come in off the bench was another example of his team-first mentality.

Harris still logged a lot of quality time on the court for the Boilers, playing 15.1 minutes per contest. At times, he was on the floor at the end of games, too, giving Purdue the best opportunity to win.

A do-it-all guard

There are lies, damn lies and statistics. So, if you try to gauge Harris's contribution to Purdue's success by looking at his stat line, you might be underwhelmed. The freshman averaged 3.8 points and 1.9 rebounds per game, but his role was much more important than what you'll read in the box score.

Harris proved he could do it all in Purdue's win over North Carolina State in the Rady Children's Invitational in late November. He ended the game with eight points, four rebounds, three assists, one block, and one steal. He logged 20 minutes in that game, helping the Boilermakers to a 71-61 win.

What Harris proved during his first season in West Lafayette was that he could help Purdue in a variety of ways. He was utilized as an extra ball-handler when defenses would pressure Smith. As a freshman, Harris was also a skilled perimeter defender. He rebounded well out of the backcourt, an asset that helped offset Purdue's lack of size at times.

Harris could knock down open three-pointers while also possessing the ability to put the ball on the floor and get to the rim. In certain situations, we saw Harris grab a rebound or catch an outlet pass and push the tempo in an attempt to catch the defense off guard.

As a freshman, it's hard to say Harris had a "specialty" in his game. But if you're able to do a little bit of everything, you're going to earn minutes on the floor, especially with his ball-handling and defensive skills.

Looking ahead to 2025-26

Like many of Harris's teammates, the next evolution in his game is consistency. If he can shoot at a higher percentage and become a bigger threat with the basketball in his hands, it's going to allow Purdue to space the floor even better during the 2025-26 season.

Aside from Smith, Harris might also be Purdue's best option to beat defenders off the dribble and get to the rim. He showcased that ability at times during his freshman year, and it will be interesting to see how that aspect of his game develops entering his sophomore campaign.

Yes, Purdue's biggest issues last season pertained to rim protection and rebounding. If there was a hole offensively, it came with a lack of playmaking off the dribble. Harris is a good enough ball-handler and has enough quickness to beat defenders off the bounce. He's strong enough to finish through contact at the rim, too.

If Harris hones in on that area of his game, he could be a 10-point-per-game scorer for the Boilers next season. On a roster that includes Trey Kaufman-Renn, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, CJ Cox, and Oscar Cluff, that would only add to Purdue's elite offensive firepower.

Gicarri Harris 2024-25 stats & highlights

Stats

• 3.8 points per game
• 1.9 rebounds per game
• 0.8 assists per game
• 39.1% FG
• 92.6% FT

Highlights