Photo credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
UNC Basketball Pro Spits Honest Truth About Career Night
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Harrison Barnes is a full-time starter for the formidable Sacramento Kings (25-18) yet often posts relatively meager stat lines in his 12th year as a pro. This week alone, though, the 31-year-old UNC basketball product has suddenly looked like one of the NBA's most prolific bucket-getters.
On Thursday night, three days after tallying 32 points in a 122-107 home win over the Atlanta Hawks, Barnes recorded a career-high 39 points to help power the Kings to a dramatic 134-133 road victory against the Golden State Warriors (19-23), the franchise that drafted him No. 7 overall in 2012 and put a championship ring (2015) on his finger.
He shot a blistering 14-for-24 from the field, 7-for-12 beyond the arc, and 4-for-4 at the charity stripe in his game-high 40 minutes on the floor. And across the final three minutes of action, he scored four points, adding a clutch block and rebound with under 20 seconds to play.
But for Harrison Barnes, now averaging 11.7 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 41.0 percent from deep through his 43 appearances this season, his performance wasn't necessarily any more important than the nights when he delivers countless screens, secondary assists, and other contributions that don't end up in the box score.
"Honestly, just playing basketball," the 2010-12 UNC basketball star opened up to the media afterward about his team-centric mentality regardless of his number of touches and by-design open looks. "There's certain occasions where coach might draw a play or things like that. But, you know, if you're open, you shoot it...
"There's plenty of times you can run up and down for five minutes and don't see [the ball] at all. Or you can run up and down for five minutes and get eight shots. So, I think however it's split up, throughout the course of a season, you just stay locked in, stay ready, and be prepared to shoot...We're all working in concert."
Barnes and the Kings, one game into a seven-game stretch away from home, next face the Dallas Mavericks (24-20) at 9 p.m. ET Saturday.
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