Now a member of a Kings team enjoying being a brash, young squad ready to make a statement in the playoffs, Harrison Barnes can remember when he went through the same experience with the Warriors. Barnes was part of the early days of the Golden State dynasty, spending the first four years of his career with the team before signing with Dallas in 2016 when the Warriors targeted Kevin Durant.
In an interview with Sam Amick of The Athletic, Barnes said he doesn’t have any bitterness related to the Warriors or the way his time with the franchise ended.
“I have nothing but fond memories of my time with Golden State,” he said. “Obviously, I think losing the Finals is always going to leave a black eye in terms of how things went, and obviously they’ve gone on to have success since. But I don’t have any ill feelings towards anybody in that organization.”
Barnes covers a wide range of topics in the interview, including his decision to turn down an extension from the Warriors, his long absence from the playoffs after leaving and how he’ll handle his upcoming free agency. Barnes also addresses hearing his name mentioned as a trade candidate as the Kings tried to build a playoff-worthy roster.
“The trade rumors in the past, I think you fully accept those because of (the struggles) of the team,” he said. “You look at it, and you say ‘OK, having three years of being here, three rounds of lottery picks, disappointment, where every trade deadline, you’re revamping the team.’ You know what I mean? It makes sense. Two front offices. (Coach Dave) Joerger leaves. Alvin (Gentry). Mike (Brown). There’s so much turnover that at that point, you’re just like, ‘I can’t expect to not be in those (trade) discussions.’”
There’s more from Sacramento:
- Brown turned around the Kings and earned Coach of the Year honors by focusing on interpersonal relationships, Amick writes in a separate piece for The Athletic. Right after being hired, Brown started getting to know his players, Amick adds, including a trip to Germany to see Domantas Sabonis play for Lithuania during EuroBasket.
- General manager Monte McNair deserves credit for building a bench that has helped Sacramento grab a 2-0 lead over the defending champs, states Marcos Breton of The Sacramento Bee. Malik Monk, Trey Lyles, Davion Mitchell and Alex Len have all played important roles in the early part of the series.
- Brown expects Sabonis to be ready for Thursday’s Game 3, tweets Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. X-rays on Sabonis’ sternum were negative after he was stepped on by Draymond Green.
The Warriors would have been very happy to keep Harrison Barnes around. When all three guys were extension eligible both Thompson and Green took the slightly less money to stay in Oakland. Harrison Barnes wanted to get paid so turned it down and played out his contract. He signed in Dallas as a free agent and took the money.
That’s fine a guy has to do what he has to do. He’s probably loving this right now as the Warriors are a little bit older and Barnes is the elder Statesman on a young kings team ready to flourish.
It’s good for the league it’s good for Sacramento and they actually look like they may do damage in the second and third round as well by the way they’re playing defense. Wow they’re good on that end of the floor.
The brash boys.
Light it.
Look forward to seeing how everything plays out tonight. Warriors going to bounce back or cave?
I have them down for the sweep
Mike Brown deserves all the accolades. His story is a comeback inspiring story in a way. People forget that he has already made plenty money, has had several head coaching gigs, has coached in Finals etc. But for awhile, it seemed his head coaching days were over after shorts stints with Cavs and Lakers. Brown however went back to basics, worked hard, made adjustments to his coaching style, and literally reinvented himself. He stayed 6 yrs as Kerr’s assistant and even coached Nigerian Olympic Team to coninue to learn, develop, and become better. For a guy who was abandoned by LBJ 2 times, he’s now become ine of the best coach who is well liked and respected by players. What a never give up comeback story. Well done Coach Brown!!
NO coach had a real chance until Vlade Divac was no longer in control. He ruined that whole organization. Joerger would have been able to really excel if he had a real opportunity. Coach Brown should be very proud of his accomplishments because he is a great coach and everyone wishes him the best!! Go Kings!!!