In a recent controversial wake, former NBA player Matt Barnes found himself in the thick of an altercation with a student broadcaster at a high school basketball game.
Over a week later, Barnes chose to break his silence and share his perspective on the incident.
The retired professional basketball player recently appeared on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, where he took the opportunity to recount his side of the troubling encounter.
Matt Barnes addresses confrontation with student broadcaster at high school basketball game https://t.co/kKWryTKxCM pic.twitter.com/G1BfPhMh2J
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 14, 2024
"I was yelling at the refs, Dan. I’ve yelled at the refs my entire college career, my 15-year NBA career. I coach AAU in the summertime, I have high school boys, and I have a five-year-old coming down the pipeline. So I’m going to be doing a lot of yelling at the refs," Barnes said. "This particular incident — I will say my one mistake was putting my hand on [the student broadcaster’s] shoulder. A lot of people want to say I grabbed this kid or I did this — I literally put my hand on this kid’s shoulder because it was almost like I was talking to my son.
"He told me to ‘sit my a** down.’ I was just like, ‘Why do you feel comfortable to be able to tell a grown man to sit his a** down? So he and I had a little back and forth, and obviously, admitting my faults to even touch him was wrong of me. But I want to make clear that the narrative of me as some guy that beats up people, I want people to know I didn’t bodyslam this kid, I didn’t chokeslam him, I didn’t do any of the sort. I literally put my hand on his shoulder like I was talking to one of my sons. And again, for touching him, I was wrong. But I just didn’t like the disrespect that came with the entitlement where they felt like they could say anything to me."
Barnes claimed that his reaction was provoked by a female fan who allegedly used expletives and exhibited rude behavior towards him.
During the broadcast, Barnes was forthright in describing the incident, mentioning that a female fan initiated the conflict by shouting cussword and even flipping him off from the stands.
However, these claims have been challenged by at least one person. This individual provided video footage that projects a starkly different narrative, suggesting Lancer, the student broadcaster, never disrespectfully addressed Barnes.
This is blatant disinformation. Jake Lancer is one of the most professional people I’ve ever worked with in broadcast or journalism. He did not say "shut up." Here are videos of what he said immediately before and after the altercation. @Tarek_Fattal @latsondheimer https://t.co/QXwlfP0cOU pic.twitter.com/OUSedsNEEX
— Julian Andreone (@JulianAndreone) February 3, 2024
If Lancer didn"t instigate tensions with Barnes as suggested in the video evidence, the reason behind the 43-year-old"s impromptu confrontation remains uncertain.
Viewers and followers of this incident are left questioning what culminated into a now public issue.
Despite the confusion surrounding the incident, one thing is clear: Lancer doesn"t view the interaction as congenial fatherly advice, as Barnes tried to portray it during his Le Batard Show interview.
This contradiction further muddles the situation and creates room for speculation about the true nature of the incident.
"We live in a world where perception is reality and if the narrative fits. And I am someone who has had a background of handling business," Barnes said. "I didn’t want this to get blown out of proportion."
