Dallas Mavericks: Harrison Barnes Has Found The Perfect Environment

Coming out of high school, Harrison Barnes was widely regarded as a future NBA superstar. Rick Carlisle and the Dallas Mavericks are tapping into that potential.

If you’re a diehard basketball fan, then you’ve likely been underwhelmed by the career trajectory of one Harrison Barnes. Barnes was the first ever incoming freshman to be named a preseason All-American, but has since failed to realize his star potential.

In his fifth NBA season, the 24-year-old has finally found the perfect environment to enable his potential to become reality.

Barnes certainly wasn’t a bad player with the Golden State Warriors, but he’s underwhelmed at most of his basketball stops. He wasn’t the superstar that most expected him to be with the North Carolina Tar Heels and he became a role player with the Warriors.

Though it’s early in the 2016-17 NBA regular season, Barnes is finally playing with the confidence of a legitimate NBA star.

The question is: can he maintain this pace for a full season?

Barnes was selected at No. 7 overall in the 2012 NBA Draft, but he received No. 1 pick hype leading up to each of his two collegiate seasons. During his four years with the Golden State Warriors, he averaged 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 44.8 percent shooting.

In 2015-16, Barnes averaged a career-high 11.7 points on an efficient slash line of .466/.383/.761 in 30.9 minutes.

Following Golden State’s well-documented signing of four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant, Barnes left the Warriors. He Barnes signed a four-year deal worth $94,438,525 with the Dallas Mavericks.

Though many questioned whether or not Barnes deserved a max contract, the Mavericks haven’t yet been given reason to regret it.

Barnes opened the 2016-17 regular season with 19 points and nine rebounds on shooting marks of 8-of-14 from the field and 3-of-6 from 3-point range. He did so against an all-world defender in Indiana Pacers star Paul George.

Two days later, Barnes went off for 31 points, five rebounds, one assist, and a steal on 13-of-23 shooting from the floor against the Houston Rockets’ defensive ace: Trevor Ariza.

It’s hard to ignore the fact that Barnes’ performances came against two of the best defensive players at his position. It’s also impossible to overlook the reality that he’s just two games into his Dallas Mavericks tenure.

Though that may be true, the move to Dallas is clearly paying dividends.

Barnes is playing for a head coach, Rick Carlisle, who excels at putting his players into the best possible positions to succeed. The evidence is 2010-11, when Carlisle led Dirk Nowitzki and an otherwise starless team to the franchise’s first NBA championship.

Though he’s long underwhelmed from a pure production standpoint, Barnes undoubtedly has the talent to become a star under Carlisle.

Barnes is a 6’8″ and 225-pound small forward with a 6’11” wingspan and a near 40″ max vertical leap. He’s an efficient 3-point shooter, a quality threat from midrange, a productive rebounder, and a capable defender when his motivation is to be such.

Barnes is also an NBA champion who has spent his career in winning cultures at North Carolina and Golden State.

Barnes may or may not become a superstar, but he has the necessary surroundings to do so in Dallas. Carlisle is one of the Top 5 coaches in the NBA, Nowitzki is a revered player and teammate, and Mark Cuban is finally willing to spend big money to build a contender.

Coupled with the long-awaited opportunity to be the focal point of an offensive system, this is the perfect environment for Harrison Barnes to flourish.

Must Read: The New Orleans Pelicans need to enable Anthony Davis to anchor the defense

This could be a breakout season for a player whom basketball diehards have always known could be a star.