Will Harrison Barnes Be Another Player Spurs Need To Worry About?

May 12, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes (40) dunks the ball against the San Antonio Spurs in the first quarter in game four of the second round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Harrison Barnes had a career-high 26 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter and overtime, as the Golden State Warriors came back from eight points down in the final five minutes to beat the San Antonio Spurs 97-87 Sunday in Game 4 of their Western Conference semifinal, knotting the series at 2-2.

Barnes, who added 10 rebounds, had two free throws and a shot-clock-beating pull-up jumper as the Warriors scored the first nine points of overtime to take control and ensure Oracle Arena will see at least one more postseason contest.

San Antonio’s gameplan is find a way to contain Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. The Spurs have done a remarkable job on both of these players. Thompson after exploding for a career high 34 in game two, has not had an offensive explosion since, but he still did manage to hit big shots down the stretch for the Warriors.

Curry is not 100%, that was apparent. You would not of thought that he was hurting with his first two threes hit the bottom of the net. Adrenaline probably played a role in him blocking out the pain. He did finish the game with 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the floor.

Back to the play of Barnes. Is he a threat now for San Antonio to throw into their gameplan? He shot horribly from the floor (9-26) but managed to put up 26 points. Down the stretch he had a mismatch as Tony Parker was guarding him and they sent him down to the post. Barnes, of course being the taller of the two, knew that he had a shot and took advantage. The Spurs though, seeing the mismatch did manage to draw some help to him.

Barnes is an athletic player. He has a lot of energy and from his days at North Carolina, he has become a much better player. With Curry and Thompson being some what quiet, Barnes picked a perfect time to bring his game to the table and turn some heads.