COMMENTARY: Juke Harris finds success on the defensive end

Al LesarSat, July 25, 2026 at 11:05 AM UTC·2 min read

After collecting 21.4 points and 6.5 rebounds as a sophomore at Wake Forest last year, Juke Harris had a pretty good idea his game would be ready for the NBA.

But, in the back of his mind, he felt there might be something missing.

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That feeling played into the decision to bypass the NBA Draft this summer and give college basketball one more shot. The biggest change, though, was turning to a guy who wasn’t going to tell him how great he was.

Harris had a feeling that getting coached by Tennessee’s Rick Barnes was going to be what he needed to round out his game for the next level.

“(My game has improved) definitely on the defensive end, playing more into the ball,” Harris said recently before a summer workout. “Getting off different types of ball screens; getting through them. I’ve definitely improved on the defensive end.”

“(Harris) really wants to get better,” Barnes said. “He wants to be all he can be as a basketball player. It’s a whole new system. It’s not just Juke, but all of them, knowing what it’s going to take on a defensive level.

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“Juke Harris is extremely strong. He’s a little unselfish, maybe to a fault. There are times we need him to be more aggressive shooting it.”

That fine line between averaging 20 points a game and sharing the basketball is something that comes easy to Harris, especially in the summer.

“This is a time when you can see what the other guys can do,” Harris said. “We all get used to playing together.”

Getting used to everyone has been difficult in the summer workouts that will end next week. Except for DeWayne Brown II and Troy Henderson (who missed summer workouts after shoulder surgery), the entire Tennessee roster is new.

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The Vols were put together with an emphasis on offense, operating under the assumption that defense can be taught. The key is, defense is a mindset that the players either buy into or they don’t.

That’s where Barnes comes in. He’s the ultimate common denominator when it comes to getting the play he preaches out of his team.

“You come here, you unlock something — being mentally strong, being able to play through contact, being a dog on the defensive end,” Harris said. “I never thought I’d be decent on defense.

“(Barnes is) going to be the same, regardless of what’s going on. If something’s not going right, he’ll let you know. He’s not going to sugarcoat anything. That’s something I needed.

“As the game goes on, we get deeper into the games when everyone’s clocking out, we still need four more minutes in a close game. Then, you’ll see what gets unlocked.”