By Mallory Mattingly
San Antonio Spurs veteran forward Harrison Barnes is playing for his third NBA Finals championship, and he’s sharing his experience with younger players.
Barnes won the 2015 NBA Finals with the Golden State Warriors. He returned the following year with the Warriors but would come up short to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Ten years later, Barnes is playing for another NBA Finals, and he finds himself in more of a mentor position. At 34-years old, Barnes’ “role now is more as the wily veteran helping provide leadership to a young Spurs team led by emerging stars like 22-year-old Victor Wembanyama, 21-year-old Stephon Castle and 20-year-old rookie Dylan Harper,” Sports Spectrum reported.
“Shout out to HB,” forward Devin Vassell told the Express-News in late May. “It’s been great for us so far and just his wisdom and his knowledge being in so many different games, Game 7s, championship games, whatever the case may be. He’s been able to just kind of calm us down and just tell us kind of what to expect.”
With this potentially being his last time reaching the Finals, Barnes isn’t taking it for granted.
“This may be the last time both teams are in the Finals for a while. We have no idea,” Barnes told Tom Orsborn of the San Antontio Express last week.
In his 14th season, Barnes didn’t expect to see another NBA Finals in his career.
Related: Harrison Barnes Faces Former Team: ‘His Relationship With God Comes First’
“There were a lot of years where we were missing the playoffs,” he told KCCI News. “…To be here this year where we’re in the NBA Finals, it’s a very unique and special situation.”
This season, Barnes played his 1,000th career NBA game, a feat that he gives credit to “having a village and day-to-day work and commitment. Obviously, it starts with my faith, but also my wife, Brittany, being the rock for me,” he told the outlet.
On his website, Barnes describes himself as a “devout Christian” where he “values his family and friends above anything else.”
“Money, fame, and talent can be the top priorities for most professional athletes, but for Harrison Barnes, it’s his relationship with God that comes first. He is a Christian,” his website says. “Ever since he was young he grew up in the church. His faith has always been a big reason why he plays.”
Barnes continues to keep his faith at the forefront of his life on the court.
As he celebrated 50 wins with the Spurs this season, he referenced Matthew 7:24, which reads, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
Fourteen years into his career, Barnes has come full circle, utilizing his vast experience, steadying leadership and unshakeable faith to guide a young San Antonio Spurs team through a rare NBA Finals opportunity.
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