Harrison Barnes is an important piece to the Kings' NBA playoff chances, not only on the court but also in the locker room.
Speaking to reporters after Sunday's practice, Kings guard Kevin Huerter explained how Barnes' veteran presence paid dividends in Sacramento's 126-123 Game 1 win over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday at Golden 1 Center.
"He settles us down, he has all year," Huerter shared. "It feels like in different games, especially on the road, different environments, he's a vet, he's seen everything, settles us down.
"Even to start last game, he's starting off the game with a steal and going the other way, he's just different for us. Plays at a different pace than maybe the rest of our team plays at, just huge to have him."
In 36 minutes, Barnes scored 13 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had three steals and two assists. Moreover, the former Warrior was able to slow the game for his younger teammates and prepare them for what to expect against his old squad.
By now, it's clear that Sacramento and Golden State run very similar offensive sets, and considering Barnes and Kings coach Mike Brown have been part of the Warriors' system at some point, the two have an idea of how to slow down the defending champions.
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That level of veteran savvy is incredibly helpful to a young, up-and-coming squad like Sacramento, which Brown calls "huge."
"If you think about it, you look back at the history of a lot of NBA champions, I don't even know if there's a team that has won that doesn't have vets that have played at a high level for multiple years in a row and HB is our guy that does that," Brown said to reporters. "[Matthew Dellavedova] is our guy that does that."
Brown added that Barnes' experience winning a championship with the Warriors and Dellavedova winning a title against Golden State helps in the long run against their NorCal rivals.
"So the knowledge they can pass on to these guys, especially in dire situations or adverse situations is huge and how to respond and react to those is going to be key to us because again, we don't have, at the end of the day, the experience and so we're going to have to go through it as a group for the first time," Brown concluded.
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As the Kings look to take Game 2 against the Warriors, everyone has to play their role to perfection in order to beat the defending champions again, especially at G1C.
And with Barnes guiding the young players, that task should be more manageable.