Sacramento Kings: In defense of Harrison Barnes’ contract

The Sacramento Kings have received plenty of pushback for the contract that they gave Harrison Barnes this offseason, but we’re here to defend the deal.

The Sacramento Kings‘ performance this offseason seems to have been met with a mixed bag of reactions. Some feel that the contracts that the team gave out were exuberant and overpays while others see the vision of the organization and give them a pass for any extra spending.

Either way, the primary contention seems to center around the contract that the team handed to small forward Harrison Barnes.

After a half-season spent in Sacramento, the Kings opted to sign Barnes to a 4-year, $85 million extension this offseason. This came after the team had acquired him in February from the Dallas Mavericks — a team that had handed him a max contract back in 2016.

Barnes fit well with the Kings putting up modest numbers in his 28 games played. The former Golden State Warrior averaged 14.3 points and 5.5 rebounds in 33.9 minutes per game all while shooting a healthy 45.5% from the field and 40.8% from three-point range.

The Kings had a major need at the small forward position and Barnes was able to step in and fill that role admirably. As a result, Sacramento made it clear that re-signing him was a priority this offseason after he opted out of his player option for 2019-20.

For that reason, the $85 million figure is hardly surprising — even if those around the league would like to claim that it is.

Let’s make this simple. Did the Kings overpay for Barnes? Yes, they did. But was it a necessary move that was ultimately the correct decision? Also yes.

The Kings saw the value that Barnes brought to their wing and decided that they couldn’t afford to lose him in free agency. Some will claim that the Kings were “bidding against themselves,” but those who say that ignore the value that Barnes holds leaguewide.

His three-and-D acumen is one that is in high demand around the league and there’s certainly a team that would have paid very close to what the Kings ultimately gave him. Essentially, it seems that the NBA values Barnes significantly more than “NBA Twitter” and the general “NBA media” does.

That’s evidenced by the max contract that Dallas gave to him and now the hefty deal that Sacramento has inked him to. And this is okay, there are plenty of players across all sports who receive multiple expensive deals that simply befuddle the general public.

But that’s just the nature of sports. And it’s also the nature of free agency.

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Teams will always have to overpay in free agency. It’s what happens when a player hits the open market and suddenly finds themselves in the midst of a bidding war with multiple teams all vying for their services. The price tag will almost always be higher than it should be.

That goes double for teams in small markets like Sacramento. The Kings don’t have the luxury of attracting high-profile free agents with their city alone — ala the Los Angeles Lakers and/or Brooklyn Nets.

Instead, the Kings must overpay for free agents in order to compete. That’s just the unfortunate reality of the NBA. So it’s important to consider context when evaluating the contracts that teams like the Kings give out in free agency.

Sometimes they’re necessary evils.

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Lastly, the detractors of Barnes’ contract have seemingly failed to acknowledge one of the most important aspects of the deal. That being that the contract is front-loaded.

This was done strategically so that the Kings could maintain cap flexibility down the line. With some of their young core players — Buddy Hield, De’Aaron Fox, etc. — due to receive contract extensions in the near future, it’s important that the Kings keep their long-term deals limited.

Cap space is crucial and the Kings were clearly fine with sacrificing short-term financial loss for long-term core stability. And it’s pretty difficult to argue with that logic.

On the surface, Barnes’ contract is an overpay. He’s a very solid, well-rounded player who is deserving of a starting role on most NBA rosters. But he’s not worth $85 million.

However, context is critical when it comes to evaluating contracts. And in this case, context would indicate that the Kings made the correct decision.