Contrary to previous reports, the Sacramento Kings are fully committed to Harrison Barnes.
Per James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area, the Kings have no regrets signing Barnes to a contract extension this summer, emphasizing that the veteran swingman has a role to fulfill for the team's young core.
According to a league source, the Kings are not having buyers remorse, as reported earlier today, from the signing of Harrison Barnes to a four-year extension this summer. Barnes is considered an important piece to their young core.
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) October 18, 2019
Barnes signed a four-year, $85 million extension with the Kings this offseason. However, his new contract has also hurt the franchise's negotiations with rising star guard Buddy Hield, who refused to sign a four-year, $90 million extension.
Last season, Barnes averaged 16.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists. He began his 2018-19 campaign as a member of the Dallas Mavericks before he was sent to the Kings in a trade deadline deal.
Sacramento was optimistic that the core of him, Hield and De'Aaron Fox will help bring them back to the playoffs, though it remains to be seen if that core will remain intact.
It wasn't a long time ago when Barnes was considered as one of the fastest rising stars in the league. When the Mavs convinced him not to re-sign with the Golden State Warriors back in 2016, they believed that he'd soon become an All-Star in the NBA.
However, although Barnes has been consistently improving, it is now pretty obvious that he's nowhere near the All-Star level that the Mavs hoped he'd become. If he will be able to excel for the Kings this season, maybe it will erase their doubts about signing him to a long-term extension.
At this point, the Kings front office shouldn't worry about him. Instead, they should do everything that they can to keep Hield, because if they lose him next season, that's something that they will definitely regret.
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