Harrison Barnes will be a heavily pursued restricted free agent and figures to receive offers of at least $20 million per season and for as much as a max offer starting at $23 million per season.
Barnes rejected a four-year, $64 million offer from the Warriors last offseason when he was extension eligible.
The Warriors are expected to keep the team together to re-sign Barnes regardless of the cost unless they have a chance to instead sign Kevin Durant.
“I think that all along that they were not going to let him go unless they fell down and didn’t win it all. It might just be that they’re trying to push down offers, but that’s the message,” said a rival GM.
If Barnes comes to the Warriors essentially asking for a fresh start with another team where he can be a more heavily featured player, the front office would likely try to accommodate him if a sign-and-trade can be agreed upon.
One rumored scenario involves trading Barnes to the Charlotte Hornets for Nicolas Batum in a pair of sign-and-trades.