Final Case for Bobcats to Draft Harrison Barnes

[CharlotteHornets]

The Cats have a decision to make on Thursday, June 28th that is the 1st step of a complete roster overhaul. For Charlotte it will be a choice between Thomas Robinson and Harrison Barnes. I believe the Bobcats should choose Harrison Barnes to be the face of the franchise going forward and below I will explain why:

The NBA game is an infinetely better fit for Harrison Barnes than the college game. Why? First of all, in the NBA there is a no handchecking allowed on the perimeter (A defender may not place and keep his hand on an opponent. A defender may momentarily touch an opponent with his hand anywhere on the court as long as it does not affect the opponent's movement). If you go back and watch film on Harrison Barnes struggles in ball-handling you can tell that handchecking was one of the things that really bothered him. He would often try to use his off hand to knock away the opponents hand. Kobe Bryant recently stated that the "college game is infinitely more physical on the perimeter than the NBA game". You will see that Barnes ball handling will improve immensely when he is not being hand checked. Second, there is no true zone defense allowed in the NBA. I know teams can play a zone but there is a defensive 3 second rule in the NBA where there is not one in college. Since the Tarheels were a dominant post team with Tyler Zeller and John Henson and many teams considered there weakness 3-point shooting the Tarheels faced a lot of zone defenses. That meant that when Barnes began to dribble in toward the lane the defense would collapse on him often with 2 or 3 opponents reaching in slapping at the ball. Third, UNC's offense was not a good fit for the development of Harrison Barnes game. Henson and Zeller were constantly down on the block which lead to a lack of space for penetration into the lane. There were very few isolation or clear out plays for Harrison Barnes and when there were the defense would often slide someone in the lane right in front of the basket because there was no defensive 3-second rule. Basically, the UNC offense was fast break, secondary break, or pound the ball into the post. That is not great for a wing player to develop his own half court offense. I can only remember one game (against Clemson) when Harrison Barnes caught fire and Roy Williams actually let Harrison Barnes go ISO in the 2nd Half. In that game Barnes finished with 40 points (12-17 shooting - 6-8 from 3). He was constantly attacking the basket against the man to man defense of Clemson getting to the foul line (10-11 Free Throws). I believe that was a glimpse into Barnes potential.

Next, Harrison Barnes is an ELITE athlete and you cannot question that. His no step vertical is 38.0" is two inches higher than Vince Carter, one of the greatest leapers in NBA History. His 3/4 Court Sprint was 3.16 Seconds. That was the fastest time at the 2012 NBA Draft Combine. Also, he measures in at a great size for the small forward position. He is 6'8 225 pounds. He has a 6'11.25" wingspan. As he continues to develop physically he is only going to get stronger and will likely fill out to 235-240 pounds which will make him a very effective post player for a 3.

Finally, I believe he fills a HUGE need for the Bobcats. At an end of game situation with the game on the line you need someone who can knock down the shot. While at UNC, Harrison Barnes was a finisher in several big games. He made at least 5 game winning shots in his career. With his 6'8 height, 8'5" standing reach, 38.0" no-step vertical, and high release on his jump shot he can get his shot off against almost anyone in the NBA.

I am a HUGE fan of Thomas Robinson. I think he will be an excellent NBA player and I will not be disappointed if we choose him. However, I think Barnes is going to develop into a special scorer on the NBA level with NBA rules and an offense more friendly to his skill set. If Charlotte drafts Harrison Barnes I believe he will average 21 ppg & 5 rpg in his rookie season and will WIN ROOKIE OF THE YEAR.

You may think I am crazy but those are just my thoughts...

[Whiz Kid]

I agree with all, however, i think 21 is a little far fetched. Its definitely possible but realistically I'd give him a 15-19 ppg rookie season. He can definitely grow to become one of the top scorers in the NBA though. I don't doubt that.

[DashGlobal]

Ill be happy with either TRob or Barnes.

Id be ok with Beal.

Id be pissed with MKG.

I am just praying we get one of Jenkins, Lamb, or Wroten with 31....

[Plowright]

I dont mind drafting Barnes, as long as we dont make him our number 1 option. I just dont want to make him into something hes not

[Veteran_Picksetter]

CharlotteHornets,

Thank you for this. You make some good points. I think 21 points a game in his prime is within the realm of possibility, but not in his rookie year.

He was far more than a jump shooter in this particular Miami game. Could this be a glimpse into his potential?:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm0hWuzP0tQ

[gamecocksmitty4]

I don't buy the excuse (not just from you...I've seen it several times) about the UNC offense. Because he struggled in a college transition offense, he's going to thrive in the NBA transition offense (that is what Dunlap said he wanted to do)?

[superb1]

More and more I'm believing that Barnes would be better fit for us. I'm hoping we trade down with Cle to pick up that 4 and 24. But I won't be difficult for me if he went at 2.

[Toocool]

Firstly, I want to say that it would be hard to say that anyone could ever beat Vincesanity in terms of vertical. Yes, the stats say differently but if you compare the two, Vince is far superior. Dude was an absolute freak of nature in his prime. Barnes suffers from what I nickname the 'Hendo mentality' or the 'stand around and do nothing.' It's that killer mentality that superstars like Kobe have, knowing that when the game is on the line or they desperately need the bucket, they want the ball. Barnes lacks that, and a lot has been said about that. Rarely goes to the rim, poor ball handling, and is he a legit no.1 option are all question marks Barnes has. He won't average 21/5 in the league, it'll be a harder transition for him in my opinion, bigger more athletic defenders means its not as easy to get your shot off (although he does have a good mid-range game). He had so much expectation coming into college, and he didn't fulfill it. Same will apply to Charlotte. He'll come here with massive expectations as well, will he be able to fulfill that?

That being said, he has a great size and is athletic. He has a great jumper, and already is a solid catch and shoot player. Gets to line at a solid rate which also helps.No doubt he'll be an awesome defender in the league if he continues to work hard on that end of the floor..

Is it worth a #2 pick? I'll leave it up to Cho to decide, but I personally would say no. He lacks that killer instinct to be picked at #2

[DashGlobal]

As it stands now, there isnt no wing franchise player or number 1 option in this draft.

All these guys would be the 2-3 options on good playoff teams.

Outside of a few guys with alot of potential im just looking to add some solid quality foundation pieces to help going forward.

[marino13882]

If we trade down to the 4, I would be okay with Barnes, but I would rather have Beal or Robinson before Barnes. But I think getting Barnes at 4, then a big at 24 would be solid.