Unlocking Harrison Barnes' Potential Is Steve Kerr's Most Underrated Move

Harrison Barnes is finally starting to realize the massive potential that once made him the most highly touted recruit in the country.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr deserves copious amounts of admiration for his work with Barnes, even if it's one of many praise-worthy accomplishments appearing on the first-year coach's resume.

To date, Kerr has pushed the Warriors to the top of the NBA standings with a 25-5 record, ignited an offense that grew stagnant under former coach Mark Jackson and continued to elicit an elite defensive effort. Kerr has set the stage for multiple players to enjoy career years and gotten former All-Stars Andre Iguodala and David Lee to embrace reserve roles.

If Kerr hears his name called as the 2014-15 NBA Coach of the Year, expect all of these achievements to be discussed in the reasoning behind the honor. But correcting Barnes' basketball trajectory is an easy task to overlook, despite holding major implications for Golden State's present and future.

Just last season, Barnes was struggling to keep his once-towering ceiling from completely collapsing.

His two-year tenure at the University of North Carolina created more questions than answers. He scored at an impressive rate (16.3 points per game), but his numbers showed some inefficiencies (.430/.349/.734 shooting slash) and not much of anything else. He was not a great rebounder or defender, nor was he even a good passer.

The only consistent thing on his stat sheet was inconsistency. His aggressiveness seemed to waver, and his box scores did the same. He scored 20-plus points 20 different times but failed to reach double-digit points in 11 of his games with the Tar Heels.

His first two seasons with the Warriors followed the same narrative only with fewer peaks and deeper valleys. The seventh overall pick in 2012 encountered his fair share of low points (five scoreless outings last season alone), and even his good times weren't always what they seemed.

Some felt as if he had broken out in the 2013 postseason, specifically when he ripped the San Antonio Spurs for 17.3 points a night in the conference semis.

But those numbers were deceiving.

D. Clarke Evans/Getty Images

The Spurs conceded Barnes' production by defending the 6'8", 225-pound wing with 6'2", 185-pound point guard Tony Parker. The Spurs focused their defensive efforts on limiting Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, a formula that eventually yielded a six-game series win for San Antonio.

While Barnes' rookie year was underwhelming, his sophomore effort was unsettling. Forced out of starting duty by newcomer Andre Iguodala, Barnes tried—and typically failed—to be the primary offensive weapon for the second team.

But the Warriors were painfully light on reserve playmakers, meaning Barnes was forced to create his own shots. As ESPN.com's Ethan Sherwood Strauss explained in January, individual creativity is not one of Barnes' strengths:

"

Barnes dribbles with the stultifying caution of someone who fears the ball might set off land mines. He also holds on to it with the slow, deliberate focus of someone consulting a Magic 8 ball. To summarize, he’s a ball-stopper, but without the gaudy individual offense that many ball-stoppers can conjure up in isolation.

"

Barnes provided roughly the same volume contributions over those two seasons (9.5 points and 4.0 rebounds as a sophomore, 9.2 and 4.1 the year prior), but his efficiency plummeted. His field-goal percentage fell from 43.9 to 39.9. His player efficiency rating suffered nearly an 11 percent hit (9.8, down from 11.0).

But to many observers, these weren't Barnes' failures as much as they were failures of an antiquated offensive system. He was utilized incorrectly or sometimes not at all.

"Last season we had a lot of guys who wouldn't touch the ball 10 or 15 possessions—Harrison was one guy that struggled with that," Andrew Bogut said, per Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News. "He wouldn't get a touch for so long and everyone was, 'Oh, he's shooting a bad percentage.' Well, no (bleep)."

Barnes rarely found his rhythm, and his confidence seemed to suffer as the misses piled up.

Rocky Widner/Getty Images

Then, Kerr rode in like a knight in shining armor this past offseason, promising to deliver the Bay Area an offense that emphasized movement of players and the ball. For Barnes, this was music to his ears.

When asked about isolation basketball during training camp, he declared, per Bay Area News Group's Diamond Leung, "Those days at least for me, those are going to be put on hold for quite a while." 

Kerr further set the stage for Barnes' resurgence by moving him back into the starting lineup. Barnes hasn't looked like the same player since—in a good way.

Season	PTS	FG%	3P%	REB	ORtg	DRtg	PER
2012-13	9.2	43.9	35.9	4.1	102	107	11.0
2013-14	9.5	39.9	34.7	4.0	100	105	9.8
2014-15	10.8	50.2	40.5	6.6	120	102	13.9

Barnes isn't playing the same game anymore. His offensive involvement has been focused around the most efficient areas on the floor: beyond the arc, near the basket and at the free-throw line.

Both his three-point attempt rate (.312) and free-throw rate (.316) are career highs. He is attempting 31.2 percent of his shots within three feet of the basket, up from 22.4 last season. And 57.3 percent of his two-point field-goal attempts are coming off assists compared to only 49.3 percent in 2013-14.

Barnes rarely stands still anymore. He covers 3.6 miles per 48 minutes, via NBA.com's player tracking data, which is tied for the most among all players averaging at least 30 minutes per game. Given his elite athleticism, there are obvious perks to keeping him on the move.

"When you move and you have great shooters out there, you just fall into baskets," Barnes said, per Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Even when Barnes isn't moving he's an offensive threat. The Warriors are averaging 311.1 passes per game, up from only 245.8 last season. That type of ball movement has created a number of clean looks for their shooters, and Barnes has capitalized on his. He has converted 42.6 percent of his catch-and-shoot threes, a better rate than Splash Brothers Curry (38.1) and Thompson (41.7).

Ditching the isolation game was an obvious call. As Barnes noted himself, per Bay Area News Group's Marcus Thompson II, Kerr's offense is a far better fit for his skills:

"

It’s hard when you get the ball in an iso situation and you have a set defense in front of you. Very few players in the league can do that. You look at the best – Durant, Melo, those guys – look at what percentage they shoot. And that’s the best of the best, so you can imagine where I’m at. I’m like at 15, 20 percent on isos. To get me with the ball moving, getting me in different spots, playing off other people, that’s more of a strength for me right now. Going straight isos, that wasn’t a strength for me.

"

Even getting Barnes back with the starters wasn't as bold as it seemed provided the switch was made with Iguodala's approval. Barnes' best offensive work comes away from the ball, so it made sense to trot him out with Curry, Bogut, Thompson and Draymond Green.

"Barnes can make an impact without dominating the basketball," Bleacher Report's Stephen Babb wrote. "He's a dangerous finisher in transition, a strong cutter and a steady spot-up shooter. And those are all things he can do while allowing Curry and Thompson to make things happen with the ball in their hands."

Offensively, this has been nothing short of a second chance for Barnes, an opportunity to prove his NBA existence can be greater than that of a failed prospect.

It's needed to be that good, since Iguodala's first-ever move to the bench has been a bumpy transition. The career starter is shooting just 44.3 percent from the field (his worst rate since 2009-10) and averaging the fewest points of his career (7.1 per game).

But Iguodala is finding other ways to help this team, particularly on the defensive end. Not to mention, curbing his production is more preferable than stunting the growth of one of Golden State's only true prospects.

For Barnes, this is bigger than finding new, more effective ways to score. It's about developing the all-around player he's always had the tools to become.

Duane Burleson/Associated Press

More than a regimented role, Barnes needed freedom to find himself. He needed confidence from his coach to help restore his own. He needed a shot to either sink or swim on the biggest stage.

Kerr has given him all of the above.

"I think he needed to play this year," Kerr said, per Kawakami. "Last year was a tough year for him. He needed minutes. He needed to just play and let loose and find his game again."

Barnes' shooting success has been the most obvious sign of his growth, but he has developed in nearly every aspect.

His 11.4 rebounding percentage is easily a personal best. He has more than half as many defensive win shares through 30 games (1.5) as he did in 78 last season (2.8). He has held opposing power forwards to a 12.3 PER after yielding a 19.2 to them last year, via 82games.com.

His athleticism and defensive versatility add a layer to Golden State's long small-ball, switch-everything lineup. He can close quickly on a shooter, body up a bigger player on the post and stay in front of dribble drives anywhere in between.

The Warriors have outscored their opponents by 13.6 points per 100 possessions with Barnes on the floor. Last season, they had a minus-0.8 net rating in his 2,204 minutes. Playing with a better supporting cast has helped, but the on-court success has his fingerprints all over it.

And Barnes' development has Kerr's fingerprints all over it. It's been a pivotal step for this championship-starved franchise and one that should grow even more valuable with time.

Barnes is the only player on the roster under 24. His growth is paramount to Golden State finding sustained success.

If Kerr has figured out how to make Barnes a consistent contributor, the Warriors should be reaping the rewards of this breakthrough for years to come.

Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.

Follow @ZachBuckleyNBA