Can they afford Harrison

[Montalban]

Mont: I don't see it. I don't see any athleticism at all and even less explosiveness. I see a guy who hangs mostly on the perimeter w a very decent shot. Not great shot but good. If we can get Plumlee of the Nets for Barnes, I do it. No questions asked.

Really? I love the way he goes to the basket. He does disappear for long stretches of the game though.

 

[CohanHater]

Really? I love the way he goes to the basket. He does disappear for long stretches of the game though.

He attacks the basket well without the ball, or when the lane is wide enough to drive a truck through. If he were to add a 1st step move along with some dribbling, he'd take a HUGE leap forward. The problem is that he's very mechanical in just about every aspect of the game. It's not due to a lack of athleticism, but more because he seems to always be thinking and doubting himself.

Have you ever played with a guy that cleans up all the scraps and dominates a game above the rim, but you put a guy on him that will knock the ball away from him or just be busy guarding him and he disappears? That's essentially him. Cedric Ceballos was that kind of player... eventually he turned into a scoring machine when he learned how to dribble the ball.

Usually by this point in someone's career you've seen that player's ceiling. I think Barnes has another level to hit, he just needs to focus on the right area of his game.

 

[rayhl111]

spot on

He attacks the basket well without the ball, or when the lane is wide enough to drive a truck through. If he were to add a 1st step move along with some dribbling, he'd take a HUGE leap forward. The problem is that he's very mechanical in just about every aspect of the game. It's not due to a lack of athleticism, but more because he seems to always be thinking and doubting himself.

Have you ever played with a guy that cleans up all the scraps and dominates a game above the rim, but you put a guy on him that will knock the ball away from him or just be busy guarding him and he disappears? That's essentially him. Cedric Ceballos was that kind of player... eventually he turned into a scoring machine when he learned how to dribble the ball.

Usually by this point in someone's career you've seen that player's ceiling. I think Barnes has another level to hit, he just needs to focus on the right area of his game.

Cohen: Right. He tends to think about his game and what do a lot. He doesn't have much in the way of flow, fluidity or knack. He gets confused. I do think he'll figure things out but I don't see a huge upside just better around the margins.

 

[GregWarriorsfan]

HB has to learn to go to the basket while being able to use more than one long set of steps. He's got to add some spinning to his repetoire, spin dribble moves, fakes, etc. No one who can drive to the basket ever just had one move, dribbling to the basket, picking the ball up, taking two steps and then putting the ball up.

He really needs to work on dribble moves, hesitation moves, off hand layups, etc. I love everything about HB other than his moves around the basket and his level of confidence. He's got a whole lot of upside and he's still very young in the scheme of things.

 

[Montalban]

He attacks the basket well without the ball, or when the lane is wide enough to drive a truck through. If he were to add a 1st step move along with some dribbling, he'd take a HUGE leap forward. The problem is that he's very mechanical in just about every aspect of the game. It's not due to a lack of athleticism, but more because he seems to always be thinking and doubting himself.

Have you ever played with a guy that cleans up all the scraps and dominates a game above the rim, but you put a guy on him that will knock the ball away from him or just be busy guarding him and he disappears? That's essentially him. Cedric Ceballos was that kind of player... eventually he turned into a scoring machine when he learned how to dribble the ball.

Usually by this point in someone's career you've seen that player's ceiling. I think Barnes has another level to hit, he just needs to focus on the right area of his game.

Man, I don't see him as mechanical at all. He looks like he just glides to the basket; especially on the break.

 

[CohanHater]

Man, I don't see him as mechanical at all. He looks like he just glides to the basket; especially on the break.

Right, when the ball is not in his hands, he's a different player.

 

[Montalban]

Right, when the ball is not in his hands, he's a different player.

I'll have to watch more closely and see what you guys are talking about.

 

[CitySushi]

Barnes' athleticism is right up there with the best of them. He's taken his game to another level with his proficiency this year shooting the 3. The next major improvement for him to do will be two things: 1) Ball handling and 2) Post work.

Now that he's a threat from the outside, it opens up the entire game for him. When he has guys running at him to contest, he'll have plenty of chances to take the ball to the rim. He's already a very good finisher. He needs to get his handle down though in order to take that next big leap. If he's able to take his defender off the dribble, it puts the person who's guarding him in tough spots. Do they close out hard to contest his shot? Do they sag off a bit to allow a cushion if he drives? Having a handle could potentially make him a very hard match up in the future.

His post work isn't a priority but would be a luxury. When teams start putting their bigger defenders on Steph, they usually do so by putting one of the smaller guys on Klay or HB. If HB is able to take advantage by bringing the small guys in the post, it could deter opponents from using one of their weaker defenders and hiding them on HB.