For the fourth time in seven seasons, someone who called Ames home, either for a stint in college or while growing up there, will be represented in the NBA Finals.
The former Iowa Mr. Basketball, Harrison Barnes, will be playing in his third NBA Finals in his 14-year NBA career as a backup forward for the San Antonio Spurs. His team defeated the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals on May 30.
Barnes, who turned 34 on May 30, has played nearly 100 games for San Antonio, spanning the regular season and the playoffs, since being traded there in 2024. He has appeared in 18 games during the 2026 playoffs, averaging 2.6 points and 1.3 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per game.
Barnes and the Spurs now advance to face the New York Knicks for the championship. Here is what you should know about the 2026 NBA Finals and the Iowa connections that are on both teams.
When do the 2026 NBA Finals begin?
Game 1 of the NBA Finals begins Wednesday, June 3, with the Knicks traveling to San Antonio to face the Spurs. The game is set to tip off at 7:30 p.m. CT on ABC.
Here is the schedule for the rest of the 2026 NBA Finals:
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Watch the NBA finals on Fubo
Iowa State legend Tyrese Haliburton was the last former Iowa collegiate player to play in the finals in 2025 as a member of the Indiana Pacers. Before Haliburton, former Iowa State players Talen Horton-Tucker and Abdel Nader reached the NBA Finals in 2020 and 2021, respectively, with Horton-Tucker winning a title with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Iowa Falls native and 14-year NBA veteran Nick Collison won an NBA Championship as a member of the Thunder’s front office last year.
Northern Iowa ties to both Finals coaching staffs
While no other Iowa natives will be playing in the 2026 Finals, the University of Northern Iowa will be represented on the two teams’ coaching staffs by former UNI basketball player Kwadzo Ahelegbe and former UNI video coordinator Sean Sweeney.
Ahelegbe is a member of the Knicks coaching staff. He was a guard at UNI from 2006 to 2011 and was a member of the Panthers’ historic 2009-10 team that reached the Sweet Sixteen of the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
He finished his UNI career ranked among the program’s top 10 in several categories, including points (1,329), free throws made (393) and games played (133). He began his coaching career in 2016 as a video coordinator for the Minnesota Timberwolves and joined the Knicks as an assistant in 2025, according to the National Basketball Coaches Association.
Sweeney, the Spurs’ associate head coach and soon-to-be head coach of the Orlando Magic, worked as a video coordinator for UNI from July 2010 to December 2011, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Harrison Barnes stats
Barnes, one of the state’s most prolific prep stars at Ames High School in the late 2000s, has built a long and consistent NBA career as a two-way player. Since being drafted No. 7 overall in 2012 by the Golden State Warriors, Barnes has averaged 13.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 46% from the field and 38.5% from three.
He won an NBA Championship in 2015 as a member of the Warriors and returned to the Finals in 2016, but lost in seven games to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Ames native also played for the Dallas Mavericks and the Sacramento Kings. During the 2025-26 regular season, Barnes appeared in 77 games, averaging 9.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists while shooting 45.6% from the field.
Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa connections in NBA Finals include Ames native and ex-UNI player
Reporting by Cooper Worth, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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