OAKLAND–Prior to Monday’s game at Oracle Arena, Warriors’ forward Draymond Green addressed the crowd and presented former Golden State forward Matt Barnes with his 2017 NBA Championship ring.
Barnes played in just 20 games for the Warriors last season, but during his speech, Green called Barnes “one of the best teammates” he’s ever had. That compliment will surely resonate with many of Barnes’ old teammates, but it may not match up with the image many NBA fans have of Barnes.
Throughout a 14-year career that involved stints with nine different teams, Barnes’ reputation was sullied by various on and off-court incidents, which Green thinks took away from a more positive view of Barnes that most of his teammates developed.
“Very misunderstood,” Green said after a Monday loss to the Sacramento Kings. “You know I think there are certain pictures that people want to paint for you, paint of you, and that’s what’s painted. Matt has had his situations of where he’s fouled somebody hard or you know, something here or there and I think a lot of people don’t understand who he is. He’s kind of painted to be this, I don’t know, whatever you want to call it, it’s inaccurate. Whatever it is, it’s inaccurate. He’s one of the best teammates I’ve ever had. Just a great guy. You’re around him, he brings great energy all the time, positive energy, willing to do whatever for it. It’s definitely misunderstood, not that he spends his days caring that he’s misunderstood. I definitely know that he is, though.”
Green presented Barnes and his twin sons with rings before the game on Monday, and afterwards, he criticized the media’s harsh portrayal of Barnes. Green pointed out that Barnes is not only an asset to a team, he’s also embraced various communities and raised money to help with cancer research.
The Warriors’ forward said that he’s reached a point where he thinks that it’s “impossible” for Barnes to shed his current reputation, and that it’s a massive challenge for players to change the way they’re perceived once they’re painted in a certain light.
“It’s impossible to kind of offset it,” Green said. “We know what’s sold today. Bullcrap is what’s sold today. All the things he does for cancer and different things like that never get the media attention that a hard foul would get, an incident off the court would get. So I think it’s impossible. Yeah, I just don’t think it’s possible, because people are going to paint whatever they want, and if there’s something positive that they don’t want to paint that picture, then it won’t be painted. I don’t think so, it is what it is, though. A great guy in my eyes.”