Harrison Barnes has struggled thus far in preseason for the San Antonio Spurs and on Tuesday night against the Miami Heat, he managed to anger Victor Wembanyama as well. In the first quarter of the contest, Barnes had an opportunity to throw a lob for an easy dunk for Wembanyama but decided not, which upset the Frenchman.
To make matters worse, Barnes ended up turning the ball over too. In some ways, I think this sequence summed up how the 32-year-old has played in preseason for his new team.
Barnes has averaged 6.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game while shooting 28.0% from the field and 31.3% from beyond the arc. He hasn't had the impact the Spurs had expected when they landed him in that three-team trade involving the Sacramento Kings and the Chicago Bulls, but it's still very early to write him off.
The hope would be that Barnes plays better once he gets more accustomed to his new surroundings and the system. With time, I'd also expect him not to pass up on the chance to link up with Wembanyama for lobs like that.
Wembanyama's teammates not passing to him was a big talking point last season. There were a fair few instances where he was wide open but didn't get the ball and hopefully, that won't be the case in 2024-25. There is one teammate, who I know for sure will be looking for the 20-year-old at all times when they're on the court and that's Chris Paul . They linked up for a monstrous dunk earlier in the preseason.
I get the feeling we'll see a lot of that this upcoming season. It's just a shame that Paul is well past his prime now, as he and Wembanyama could have been quite a formidable duo.
As for that game against the Heat, the Spurs ended up losing 120-117 to fall to 2-2 in the preseason. Wembanyama recorded eight points, seven rebounds, three assists, a steal, and a block on the night while Barnes put up 10 points, four rebounds, and an assist. The Spurs next play the Houston Rockets on Thursday, after which they'll commence their 2024-25 campaign against the Dallas Mavericks.
Victor Wembanyama Dismissed The Notion That His Teammates Don't Want To Pass The Ball To Him
While fans felt that Wembanyama's teammates were intentionally not giving him the ball, the man himself didn't agree with them. Earlier this year, Wembanyama dismissed the notion that his teammates didn't want to pass him the ball.
"Of course, I've heard of it, but it's never been close to reality. Actually, I was just on TV and I was told that some of my former coaches said that even on these teams my teammates have trouble adapting to playing with me... It's nothing to worry about, I'm not a conventional player."
"I needed time to figure out how I want to play and how I need to play for a team and I guess everyone needed time to figure out how to play with me... No, there's nobody on that team that doesn't want to pass me the ball, there's nobody I don't want to pass the ball to."
Players will indeed take time to figure out how to play with Wembanyama, who averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.6 blocks per game as a rookie. There are things you can do on the court with him that are just not possible with anyone else, so his teammates have to go against their natural instincts on occasion.
Related: Victor Wembanyama Speaks Out On His NBA Idol, Biggest Rookie Surprises, And Expectations For The New Season
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