Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes plays all 82 games for second time in his career

Harrison Barnes played all 82 games in his third NBA season for the Golden State Warriors in 2014-15. Now, eight years later, he has done it again for the Kings.

Barnes completed the feat Sunday when he started for the Kings in their regular-season finale against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. The 30-year-old forward has aged well over 11 seasons since coming out of North Carolina as the No. 7 pick in the 2012 NBA draft.

“He’s an unbelievable professional, one of the best I’ve been around, and I’ve been around a lot of guys,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “The way he takes care of his mind and obviously his body. He comes early. Stays late. He does a lot of maintenance and a lot of young guys don’t understand that gives you longevity in this league.

“For our young guys to be around him and watch him, watch his routine, it’s a blessing for us because usually young guys coming into the league don’t get that until later in their career after a couple of big injuries, so to see how you need to take care of your body early on, just for the maintenance part and your mind, is a big plus for us having him around.”

Barnes is in the final year of a four-year, $85 million contract. He will become an unrestricted free agent this summer, but first he will join De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and Kevin Huerter in leading the Kings to the playoffs for the first time since 2006. The Kings have secured the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference and homecourt advantage in the first round.

Barnes spent four seasons with the Warriors and was part of their NBA championship team in 2015 — the last time he played all 82 games. He then spent three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks before the Kings acquired him in a trade on Feb. 6, 2019.

Barnes has given Sacramento five of the best and most efficient seasons of his career, averaging 15.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 47.1% from the field and 38.5% from 3-point range. He is one of the few players on Sacramento’s roster with playoff experience.

Barnes appeared in 64 playoff games for the Warriors from 2013-16. Brown said Barnes’ veteran presence will continue to benefit the Kings as they enter the playoffs.

“HB is irreplaceable from the standpoint that he brings a calming presence to us no matter what the situation is,” Brown said. “Our two All-Stars, Foxy and Domas, are learning how to lead, and they haven’t necessarily been in huge pressure moments in the NBA and come out on top. HB has, so his calmness, his presence in a tight ballgame is extremely helpful for our young guys, not just short term but long term, too, because they’re watching an NBA champion go through a one-possession game and two minutes to go, and how is he reacting? What’s he doing on the floor? How is he getting a great look at the end of the ball game?”