Kings, Barnes Agree to Extension
Carlos Osorio/AP
Harrison Barnes will remain a Sacramento King after signing a three-year, $54 million extension on Thursday. Sacramento is relieved of their potential need to fill a hole in the starting lineup.
Barnes, one of the most desirable free agents in the league, is extended a day before the free agency market opens. The Pacers were widely rumored to aggressively pursue Barnes had he not signed an extension.
The 31-year-old’s three-year extension that will keep him under contract until age 34 may seem risky for Sacramento, but Barnes has shown no signs of slowing down, playing all 82 regular season games and seven playoff games for the Kings last season. His only season with more minutes played was with Dallas in 2016-17.
Barnes notched a career-high 126 offensive rating (per 100 possessions) last season while shooting 37.4 percent from deep. The 6’8 forward is more sturdy than lengthy, able to switch on to most players and stay attached with his impressive footwork on the defensive end. This comes in handy as he covers for De’Aaron Fox’s and Kevin Huerter's defensive liabilities.
The Kings’ lineup looks more complete than ever with the inaugural Clutch Player of the Year Fox running the show and coming up big in close games, Huerter becoming one of the best movement shooters in the league, last season’s rookie standout Keegan Murray shooting a blistering 41 percent from deep, Barnes being a classic but an equally effective three-and-D contributor, and Domantas Sabonis locking down the paint and busting out an array of graceful post moves.
Off the bench, Sacramento has a one-two punch of offensive specialist and microwave Malik Monk and defensive specialist Davion Mitchell on deck. Trey Lyles, 27, is their remaining free agent that was a solid contributor off the bench for Sacramento, coming up big in late moments. If he is brought back to Sacramento, they will benefit from the veteran’s floor-spreading and defensive contributions. Additionally, the Kings drafted Colby Jones and Jalen Slawson in the second round last week.
