2019 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far
Harrison Barnes: 4 years, $88 million (Sacramento Kings)
Free agent F Harrison Barnes has agreed to a four-year, $85M deal to stay with the Sacramento Kings, Excel Sports agent Jeff Schwartz tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 30, 2019
Like the Sacramento Kings‘ addition of Dewayne Dedmon, bringing back Harrison Barnes makes sense from a basketball perspective. He’s an established two-way wing, and though he was overpaid and wrongly cast as a main option with the Dallas Mavericks, that won’t be his role in Sac-Town.
Also like the Dedmon signing, this extension for Harry B represents a slight overpay. While $21 million per season won’t break the bank, it’s also a bit much for a guy whose numbers dipped to 14.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game once he was traded to the Kings.
With that being said, Barnes’ annual salary declines on the back end of the deal, helping Sacramento preserve flexibility down the road. Harry B was also pretty efficient in his 28 games with the Kings last year, posting .455/.408/.800 shooting splits. We’ll see if he’ll be able to improve on his chemistry with his younger teammates in a full season together.
Grade: C+