The Kings needed Iman Shumpert then. Here’s why Harrison Barnes is what they need now
Leadership is an unmistakable quality in an NBA locker room, but it doesn’t always look or sound the same.
Iman Shumpert has a unique sense of fashion. He moonlights as a rapper. He always made sure the music was bumping in the Kings’ clubhouse.
Shumpert coined popular expressions, loudly announced the team’s arrival — “Scores is here” — and came to the arena in wild outfits, like camouflage pants with a neon-green shirt, a black leather jacket, a red beanie and high-top sneakers.
Harrison Barnes is different. He’s quieter and more conservative in his appearance, far more likely to show up with a sport coat over a nice turtleneck or, perhaps, a sensible sweater. As far as we know, he’s never made a rap video, and he isn’t pushing any albums on Instagram at the moment.
Shumpert was what the Kings needed early in the season as they set out to establish a bold new identity and enough swagger to think they could actually compete in the Western Conference.
Barnes is what they need right now as they come out of the All-Star break in the vortex of a playoff race with a game against his former team, the two-time defending-champion Golden State Warriors, looming Thursday at Oracle Arena in Oakland.
“At the beginning of the year, we had Shump as our vet,” Kings rookie Marvin Bagley III said. “Now, we’ve got Harrison, so he’s coming in as that guy we can all look up to. He’s been there before, so he knows a little something about being successful.”
The Kings traded Shumpert to the Houston Rockets in a three-team deal that brought Alec Burks to Sacramento on the eve of the trade deadline. Two hours later, they made a more meaningful move to acquire Barnes from the Dallas Mavericks for Justin Jackson and Zach Randolph.
Shumpert, 28, and Barnes, 26, are former NBA champions with a wealth of playoff experience. Shumpert appeared in 71 playoff games over five seasons with the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers, helping the Cavs win an NBA title in 2016. Barnes appeared in 64 playoff games over four seasons with the Warriors. He started for their championship team in 2015.
Shumpert was energetic but undersized on defense and only occasionally provided a spark at the offensive end. Barnes is taller and longer at 6-foot-8 and 225 pounds. He consistently scores at all three levels and is proving to be an active, able, versatile defender.
Several players were understandably upset the day the trades went down. They hated to see their friends and former teammates go, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t welcomed the addition of Barnes, who was a regular topic of discussion during All-Star Weekend in Charlotte, N.C.
“I think Harrison Barnes fits really well,” Kings guard Buddy Hield said. “He’s a guy who can play (small forward) and he keeps everybody honest. He can shoot the 3, he can post up and he can drive the ball to the basket. He’s a three-dimensional scorer. He’s been in (two NBA Finals). He’s won a championship. He has experience, so he brings all that to our team.”
Barnes brings all that to a team that is one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth spot in the Western Conference. With a daunting schedule over the next 10 days, the Kings might lose ground before they make a run that could propel them into the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
Barnes could be the piece that puts them over the top.
“He’s a big wing who can play the 3 and the 4,” Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox said. “He’s posted up smaller guys. He can take bigger guys out to the perimeter. We finish the game a lot with four guards, so having someone 6-8, 6-9 who can do it all, it definitely helps us.”
The young players on this team will never forget what Shumpert did to cultivate the camaraderie and chemistry in the Kings’ locker room. Even on his way out, Shumpert made them make a promise.
“He was saying, ‘Don’t lose your identity just because I’m leaving now. We’re still the Scores no matter what,’” Kings guard Yogi Ferrell said.
That’s a promise the Kings are trying to keep. When Bagley and Fox entered the media room for All-Star Weekend interviews Friday, they loudly announced their arrival.
“Scores is here,” they said.
This swagger — the confidence, the togetherness, the #PurpleTalk — is one reason the team’s resurgence has been so much fun, and it’s something we might have missed out on if Shumpert hadn’t been here at the start of the season. The Kings needed him then, even if Barnes is what they need right now.
This story was originally published February 19, 2019 at 6:59 PM.
