DALLAS -– The math on Harrison Barnes seems hard to figure for some.

He averaged a career-high 11.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists for the 73-win Golden State Warriors. The Dallas Mavericks signed him for $94 million over the next four years, clearly projecting development for a 24-year-old with incredible intangibles.

How does that make sense for the Mavs?

Mark Cuban's explanation: "He is a team player who focuses on the role he was asked to play. His role will be much bigger with us. I don't expect him to be featured day one. But I do expect it to grow through the season."

Simply put, they’re better with Barnes than without him and haven’t exactly benefited in the past by hoarding salary cap space. His entrance into restricted free agency was fortuitously timed, with the historic cap spike and Dallas’ options limited after deciding to bid farewell to old friend Chandler Parsons. Cuban’s Mavs are willing to bet that Barnes blossoms with a bigger role.

“There’s going to be bigger expectations and I’ll have a larger role on this team, but the biggest thing I’ve learned in my four years I’ve been in the league is that winning is the biggest priority,” said Barnes, a mature, intelligent man who has pondered running for political office in his native Iowa after his playing career. “I’ll do everything I can to help this team win.”

Many were surprised when the Mavericks signed Harrison Barnes to a $94 million, four-year contract. But Dallas sees a lot of potential in the 24-year-old, and expect him to eventually blossom into a bigger role. Tom Pennington/Getty Images

Make no mistake: The Mavs didn’t sign Barnes, arguably the sixth-most impactful Warrior last season, expecting him to eventually replace the sixth-leading scorer in NBA history as the face of the franchise. The Mavs are banking on Barnes to complement Dirk Nowitzki during the big German’s twilight and be part of the post-Dirk core, not a superstar.

“Reasonable expectations are that he is a young building block and a piece to our future,” president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said, mentioning 2015-16 Mavs part-timers Justin Anderson and Dwight Powell as other athletic 25-and-under core players. “I think we’ve got a really good quality human being who is going to be given an opportunity to express himself in ways that he hasn’t in the past. I think he’ll find his little niche.”

Barnes had a little niche in Golden State. He’ll have to do much more with the Mavs to prevent critics from putting him atop lists of the league’s overpaid players.

“I talked to him this summer a lot about that,” coach Rick Carlisle said, referring to expectations that come along with a 571 percent raise in the NBA. “The bottom line is it’s a challenge that he’s got to love taking on.

“The important thing is an elevation in responsibility comes at the right rate. You don’t just get a guy like this and throw him out there and tell him he’s got to score 20 a night. ... We’ll get it to him in what I feel will be the correct doses and we’ll go from there.”

Barnes went to work with Carlisle pretty much from the moment the ink was dry on his deal, as the coach and other Mavs staffers stayed in Barnes’ hometown of Ames, Iowa, for four days to drill him and help with his camp. Carlisle focuses with Barnes on the finer details of creating and playmaking, the facets of his game that generated the most skepticism from NBA sources in terms of growth potential.

“Coach is very meticulous with the details, and he’s all about preparations,” Barnes said, “so I have to go through a lot of checks and balances before I get that privilege [of creating] for sure."

Footwork is a primary point of emphasis for Carlisle. For example, Carlisle is trying to break Barnes’ habit of jumping off both feet after a drive, which limits his ability to finish in the paint. Carlisle wants to teach Barnes to attack laterally as well as vertically.

“We’re doing this hopefully at a rate where it’s not too much too soon and it stays simple,” Carlisle said.

The most frequently cited reason for optimism about Barnes’ developmental potential is work ethic. It’s cliché, but no less authority than Nowitzki has repeatedly proclaimed that Barnes matches any teammate he’s had in that department.

“I think it’s going to be fun to play with him, and he’s definitely put in the work,” Nowitzki said. “I mean, I’ve already seen that now. There’s been tons of guys that told me that they were gym rats and I’ve never seen them in the gym at nights, but this guy is constantly in here, mornings and nights. He wants to be great.

“He’s a guy that you have to root to succeed.”

Especially if his max deal is on your dime.