Dallas Mavericks star Harrison Barnes won't be making his season debut for the Mavs as they face the Chicago Bulls on Monday night. It was head coach Rick Carlisle himself who ruled out his 26-year-old forward, who apparently is not yet fit enough to take the court at this point early in the season.
Carlisle said Barnes and Harris will miss at least the next 2 games with injuries .
— Dwain Price (@DwainPrice) October 22, 2018
Barnes strained his right hamstring in training camp in late September, and he was initially ruled out for a indefinite period. However, there has been talk of the former NBA champ nearing a return, and he was actually already upgraded to doubtful for the Mavs' matchup against the Bulls.
Nonetheless, such is the nature of hamstring injuries. As it turns out, Barnes has yet to be deemed as fit to play, and he will actually miss not only Monday's game but also Wednesday's scheduled trip to Atlanta to face the Hawks, at the least. It is very much possible that Barnes ends up missing a few more games before he is able to finally make his season debut.
When the Mavs handed Barnes a four-year, $94.4 million deal two years ago, he was slated to be the team's cornerstone star of the future. Now, he remains an important piece for the team, but the emergence of sophomore Dennis Smith Jr. and the summer arrivals of highly touted rookie Luka Doncic and former LA Clippers big man DeAndre Jordan may have put a question mark on Barnes' alpha dog status.
Barnes has a player option on the fourth and final year of his deal, which happens to be next season. This means that he can actually walk away from the Mavs next summer if he so chooses, though it is hard to see him walking away from that money.
The upcoming season is going to be a very important one for Barnes, and we're sure he can't wait to get on the court and start balling.
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