When Harrison Barnes signed a max deal with the Dallas Mavericks earlier this offseason, team owner Mark Cuban stated that he thinks the 24-year-old will evolve from a role player with the Golden State Warriors into a go-to guy in the Lone Star state.
For the time being, though, Barnes knows that label still belongs to another Mav.
"Out of respect, this is Dirk (Nowitzki)'s team," he told Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. "He's put in the years and won a championship. But I have to go out and earn that."
Nowitzki, 38, has played 18 seasons with Dallas and is nearing retirement, meaning the Mavericks will soon be tasked with finding a replacement for the face of their franchise.
Barnes doesn't expect the team to just hand over the reins to him, though, and understands he'll have to work hard to justify his $94-million contract.
"People assume that just because you get paid a lot of money and have a lot of attention that all of the sudden you're guaranteed this many shots," he continued. "I have to prove that every day in practice. I have to prove that to the coaching staff, and ultimately, if I'm going to be the guy taking shots, I've got to prove it to Dirk."
In addition to trying to impress the German 7-footer, Barnes is excited to learn from the legend.
"You have to have that balance of scoring and playmaking, and learn how to be a closer. I think that's the beauty of it, that I get to learn from one of the best to ever do it in Dirk Nowitzki. You talk about guys closing games, he's got to be top-five all time. I'm just looking forward to learning from that guy," Barnes gushed.
The 6-foot-8 small forward averaged 11.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists per game last season while shooting 46.6 percent from the field and 38.3 percent from deep. Those stats should rise in his new role on his new team, but only if he continues honing his craft.
"Whether I'm ready or not, I guess we'll find out starting with the first game," said Barnes. "But I'm willing to put in the work. And that's the biggest thing I've learned from coach (Rick) Carlisle.
"He said: 'It's going to be a process. We believe you're ready. We think you can be that player. But there's going to be some growing pains just because you're going to be adjusting to some different things.'"
