Saturday night the Memphis Grizzlies and New York Knicks will face off against each other for the first time this season. The real focus of this game won’t have anything to do with the action on the hardwood though.
By now you’ve heard the details of the October altercation between Grizz forward Matt Barnes and Knicks head coach Derek Fisher. Matt and Derek were teammates when the two played on the Lakers years ago, but that didn’t matter once Derek started dating Matt’s estranged wife, reality star Gloria Govan.
Barnes was suspended two games, but that doesn’t mean he’s over the beef, in fact, Matt has plans for a future Fisher a$$ whooping.
“I don’t talk to snakes,” Barnes told the Daily News.
Barnes, 35, is appealing to recover the lost wages from his two-game suspension levied by the league last month, an effort he acknowledges is fruitless because of his reputation. And while he thinks very little of his former Lakers teammate, Barnes told the News he didn’t want the league to discipline Fisher for his role.
“I never wish for another man’s downfall. I always knew the NBA would come down hard on me, so I wasn’t surprised… Cause I’m the bad guy.”
Matt’s teammates believe the only reason the NBA suspended him and not Fisher is because Derek got washed.
“I know I got to keep my mouth shut because then he’ll run and tell,” Barnes said. “So we’re focused on playing that team (the Knicks). And when I’m retired, him and I will cross paths again.”
Things could be awkward during family gatherings. Considering the complicated family connections that now exist between the two, them seeing each other after the NBA is likely.
