Warriors name Harrison Barnes starting SF

[ChosenOne]

Harrison Barnes will start at SF for the Warriors on opening night.

Mark Jackson gave the job to the rookie, rather than veteran Brandon Rush, despite concerns about Barnes' defense in an already-weak defensive unit. The fact that he's starting doesn't mean he's escaped a position battle, so don't reach for him as more than a flier in fantasy drafts.

[Check my Stats]

Not really how I feel about this. Big fan of his, but if they are trying to make the playoffs this year (assuming they are), I don't see why you start him over the vets they have when Barnes wasn't very spectacular in pre-season. Don't get me wrong, he was solid, but I don't think he really 'stole' that spot, which is what I would think a team vying for the playoffs would do.

 

Would have thought they would go with Rush or Wright. But then again, Jackson did give Klay a big role immediately last year, and I think Barnes is a better prospect.

[Built Ford Tough]

Not really how I feel about this. Big fan of his, but if they are trying to make the playoffs this year (assuming they are), I don't see why you start him over the vets they have when Barnes wasn't very spectacular in pre-season. Don't get me wrong, he was solid, but I don't think he really 'stole' that spot, which is what I would think a team vying for the playoffs would do.

 

Would have thought they would go with Rush or Wright. But then again, Jackson did give Klay a big role immediately last year, and I think Barnes is a better prospect.

 

Wright plays for Philly now. He was part of that 3 team trade that landed Jarrett Jack in Golden State.

 

As for starting Barnes, I kind of like it simply because I love Rush off the bench and the only position where Golden State isn't two-deep is the 2. If you start Rush at the 3, you are likely going to see him get a fairly quick hook anyways since you'll need him to spell Thompson.

[Legacy]

Not really impressed by Barnes so far, but this was expected. Young player will play less than well in his first few games. He seems really nervous out there and not aggressive enough, making dumb mistakes. He will be very solid though given more games under his belt.

[Built Ford Tough]

Not really impressed by Barnes so far, but this was expected. Young player will play less than well in his first few games. He seems really nervous out there and not aggressive enough, making dumb mistakes. He will be very solid though given more games under his belt.

 

I think he has actually played pretty well to start the season. Better than my expectations at least.

 

Like you said he has made some dumb mistakes on both offense and defense, but his shooting has been on point, he has looked a lot better driving the ball than he ever did in college and he has held his own defensively for the most part (he did get abused a bit by Caron Butler in the 3rd quarter of the Clipper game).

 

I think more of the problem is that he isn't exactly having anything run for him as all of the pin-downs, curls and off the ball movement/screens are being run for Thompson or Curry (not that you can blame Jackson or anything since they are both great shooters) and that is leaving Barnes as the safety net. The times he has had plays run specifically to get him a look, he has looked pretty good at running it and knocking down the shot.

 

If there is one thing I'd like to see him do, it is be more aggressive on the glass. I know he wasn't a great rebounder in college, but he was pulling down between 5-6 boards a game despite playing beside two of the best bigs in the country. Him only grabbing 4 boards in 3 games (haven't watched the game against Sacramento yet, will probably watch it tomorrow) is inexcusable as far as I'm concerned. That is one are he really needs to improve on.