Harrison Barnes set a deadline of Oct. 27th, the Golden State Warriors' season opener, to get an extension done.

Without a deal in place, Barnes and the Warriors broke off talks.

“This is a special locker room, a special team,” Barnes said. “I didn’t want my contract situation to hang in the air, hang over the first three games. Come to a conclusion. Either the deal is going to get done, or it’s not going to get done before the season. … It’s all basketball now.”

The leap in the salary cap motivated Barnes to bypass the Warriors' four-year, $60 million offer.

“The TV deal is big,” he said. “I’ve been paying attention to it for a while. The union had been talking about it a little bit. But once it finally happened and there wasn’t going to be any slumping – it was going to ‘boom’ spike – I was like, ‘OK.’"

Barnes consulted with close to 10 NBA veterans, childhood friends and agent Jeff Schwartz before turning down the offer.

Barnes loves Oakland and plans to keep residing there if he re-signs with the Warriors, even after the team moves to San Francisco.

“I love living in ‘The Town,’ ” said Barnes, referring to Oakland’s nickname. “I could see myself living here however long my career is. I can see myself living here when I’m done.”