Harrison Barnes sounds a surprising clutch move against the Grizzlies

Peacefully. Maybe, that defines it Harrison Barnes‘ time with San Antonio Spurs better than any other term. The 33-year-old forward has yet to miss a game since joining the Silver and Black in the summer of 2024. His veteran presence helped lead one of the youngest rosters in the NBA. He scores in double figures most nights while shooting 50 percent or better. Steady, however, does not aptly describe Barnes’ performance against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The day after I found out it was going to be without Victor Wembanyama probably next month and hours after learning he is the reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle would also likely be out of the house for a few weeksBarnes scored the game’s only seven points during a critical two-and-a-half-minute delay that led San Antonio to victory.

The first of those points gave the Spurs a 102-101 lead with 2:13 left in the game. They came on a quick shot as Barnes made his way from the three-point line to the baseline and then into the lane.

“Hey man, you throw some stuff out every now and then,” Barnes said of a tackle that’s not normally part of his arsenal. “But it was good. It was good.”

The Spurs wouldn’t trail again en route to a 111-101 victory.

Harrison Barnes describes the Spurs’ dominance below

The former North Carolina star’s 23 points against Memphis was only second De’Aaron Fox’s 26. After his Kareem Abdul-Jabbar impression, Barnes drove into the lane on the inside of the opposite sideline for a fadeaway jumper that put the Spurs up by three. A 3-pointer with 53.2 seconds left capped a run by Barnes that essentially put the Grizzlies out.

“It was good. I was just trying to figure out different ways,” Barnes said before turning to the big picture of the competition.

“Guys are stepping up, doing different things to win, and that was just one of the hits.”

Earlier in that fourth quarter, the 14-year-old forward drove the lane for his most emphatic bucket of the night.

“I haven’t had that many dunks this season. It came out of nowhere, honestly,” Barnes admitted. “I really did. I didn’t think I was going to get the angle to go left, and then I did, and then I just kind of jumped, and I was up there.”

The former Golden State Warrior and Sacramento King averaged nearly 20 points per game with the Dallas Mavericks between those two remaining games. Thanks in part to averaging between 12 and 13 points per outing in San Antonio, Barnes’ career average is 13.9.

With Vembanyama, Castle and Dylan Harper — the second overall pick in this summer’s draft — all in all, it didn’t matter much against Memphis.

“Whenever you go to the gym, you’re always working to be in those positions.” Barnes shared. “You might not be in those positions for 30 games, but you always work to have it ready and available.”

Ames, from Iowa, has started every game the Spurs have played since the start of last season. Few have proved more spectacular than his latest.