A Royal Pain
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Thoughts: Is Harrison Barnes Worth It For The Kings?

By Rafe Wong

Nov 7, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes (40) dunks the ball between Sacramento Kings center Kosta Koufos (41) and forward Rudy Gay (8) during the first quarter at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes (40) dunks the ball between Sacramento Kings center Kosta Koufos (41) and forward Rudy Gay (8) during the first quarter at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Sacramento Kings are in for a busy couple of weeks as the NBA Free Agency stage of the season is about to begin.

Right now the Kings do have a list of needs that should be addressed this month, and with that being said, A Royal Pain will follow the franchise along the way by giving our opinions on which players the Kings should or should not take.

The player that ARP will look into today is Harrison Barnes.

Harrison Barnes

Height: 6’8” Weight: 210 lbs.

The Player/Number

During his four seasons spent with the Golden State Warriors, Harrison Barnes has mostly played the role of the franchise’s starting small forward.

Throughout his tenure with Golden State, Barnes has averaged 10.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He also has shot 44.6% from the court and 37.6% from the perimeter.

The Fit

If Barnes were to be picked up by the Kings this offseason, he wouldn’t be fulfilling a big need for the Kings. Sacramento already has Rudy Gay and Omri Casspi as their small forwards, so unless one of the two (probably Gay) were to be traded, the signing of Barnes would just create a logjam at the position.

In terms of talent, Barnes has shown that he can score and rebound the ball at a solid rate and  has also proven to be adequate on the defensive end as well (101.6 defensive rating) (per NBA Stats). Overall, the Kings would be getting a player that is pretty good on both ends of the court.

Express Yourself

So Kings fans, we want to hear from you. How would you feel if the Sacramento Kings went after Harrison Barnes this free agency?

To express your thoughts on the issue, feel free to partake in our survey that is posted on our Twitter account.

Rafe’s Thoughts:

When the Sacramento Kings selected Thomas Robinson back in the 2012 NBA Draft, I was content with the pick, like most Kings fans, but was disappointed at the same time because I wanted Harrison Barnes instead.

My fantasy of Barnes eventually playing for the Kings may come to a reality this summer, but it may be for the price of a max contract, which many believe Barnes will receive. Dream is over.

I think Harrison Barnes is a good player, and he showed it during his time with the Warriors. But in order to live up to a max contract you have to be at least an All-Star caliber player which I don’t think Barnes is.

He showed to be a very good cog for the Warriors in their system, but in terms of being granted the responsibility to lead a team effectively, there hasn’t been enough evidence to prove that he can be that guy.

Because of my perspective that Barnes will not be a future All-Star going forward and also considering that the small forward position isn’t a concern for the Kings at the moment is why Sacramento should opt out of even considering signing Barnes this summer.

The Kings need to be smart in how they invest their salary cap this offseason, and using a chunk of it on just a good player is an avenue the Kings should steer away from.

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