Former Lakers forward reveals he has worked hard in offseason to recover from ankle and neck injuries and is now ready for the next challenge....
Matt Barnes is a veteran in the NBA and has spent the past few seasons playing key roles in championship contending teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic.
For a guy who has a dearth of experience coming off the bench, Barnes was not instantly picked up in free agency this past summer, but managed to sign a one year deal with the Los Angeles Clippers eventually. The small forward
has no issues with that, since he understands why that may have happened.
“First and foremost, me being injured last year during the playoffs and not really playing too well had something to do with it. Then I had a little arrest situation out here and that probably had something to do with it,” said
Barnes while talking to ProBasketballTalk.
Barnes played the last playoffs while battling neck and ankle injuries, which affected his minutes as well as his overall play. During the regular season, Barnes was averaging nearly 23 minutes a game, but these figures dropped
to less than 17 minutes during the playoffs.
Then, Barnes had an incident was law enforcement as well during the summers, when he was arrested in Long Beach for an outstanding traffic warrant and also included a resisting arrest charge. However, Barnes is looking towards
the future now, and says that both his neck and ankles injuries have fully healed and he is ready to play next season.
He was picked up by the Clippers on the insistence of their floor general, Chris Paul and becomes the latest in a series of signings for the Clips, who are looking to add some veteran experience into their talent pool.
The Clippers added Lamar Odom, Grant Hill into the roster before Barnes, and also resigned Chauncey Billups. Barnes knows that he will be fighting for minutes in the Clippers roster that is loaded with depth in the back court,
but says he is used to it now.
“Throughout my career I’ve never been handed anything. The cards have been stacked against me since I started so I just look at it as a great opportunity, and if I go in and do what I need to do I’ll land minutes. If not, I’ll
be ready to help the team,” said Barnes.
Barnes did a lot of work on his body and physical fitness this summer, and says that he also changed his eating habits in order to remain healthy and fit for the NBA. He could prove to be a valuable asset for the Clippers particularly
in close games or during the playoffs, but will first have to earn his stripes in a new team, something he has done many a times over the course of his career.
Tags: