It Hasn’t Taken Harrison Barnes Long To Adjust As A Sacramento Kings
Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports
Vlade Divac knew the Sacramento Kings needed to upgrade the roster. The Kings General Manger traded for Dallas Mavericks forward, Harrison Barnes. The move was met with open arms by the Sacramento faithful. Barnes finds himself being embraced by a supporting and dedicated fanbase. Will he sign long-term with Kings this off-season?
Many Kings fans are hoping Barnes stays a member of the team. It’s for good reason. He’s a standout player in today’s NBA. A prolific scorer from the wing, Barnes is exactly what the Kings have needed all year long.
For the better part of the season, Sacramento has struggled to find help at the SF/PF spot. While on the team, Iman Shumpert was more a locker room guy than an on-the-court contributor. Nemanja Bjelica is a solid role player who Dave Joerger trusts. Neither made/have made the biggest impact offensively. That’s the advantage to Harrison Barnes.
You can play Barnes at both forward spots. This opens the door for a pairing of Barnes, De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, and Bogdan Bogdanovic. These four have a combined 464 made three-pointers this season. While it might not be on par with their I-80 rival, Golden State Warriors, this is still a very potent offensive onslaught from three-point range.
We’ve already seen Barnes make an impact on the team. During the Sacramento Kings win against the Miami Heat on February 8th, Barnes picked up a crucial offensive board leading to a quick score. It was at that point, the Kings knew they had the game in the bag. And it was one of the team’s biggest wins this season.
While Barnes isn’t the most clutch player in the NBA (.279 FG% with under 3 minutes remaining), Dave Joerger obviously believes in him. The Kings head coach has had Barnes on the court for the final minutes of close games in just about every contest. That says a lot about the player Barnes is. He’s already earned the trust of the head coach.
In the month of February, Barnes is shooting. 471 from the field in the 4th quarter. It’s his best mark of any month this season. The trade to the Kings seems to have lit a fire within him. This is why it so crucial for Vlade Divac to re-sign Barnes over the off-season.
Sacramento can sign Barnes and still have room for a max contract player. This bodes very well for the future of the Kings. If all falls into place, the Sacramento Kings can be a top-4 team in the West. Given the ever changing landscape of the Conference, anything is possible. If Barnes re-sign’s, that’s a step in the right direction for a reborn Sacramento franchise.
Daniel is a guru of baseball and basketball prospects. He’s a very experienced Amusement Park traveler as well. Follow him and his hot takes on Insta @dgentleman9288
