Memphis Grizzlies guard Matt Barnes was reportedly involved in a physical altercation with New York Knicks head coach Derek Fisher on Saturday. Barnes showed up at ex-wife Gloria Govan’s home in Los Angeles and the two got into it. Barnes reportedly punched Fisher and felt betrayed by his former teammate, as the Knicks coach has been dating Govan for several months.
The story has generated a lot of reaction in the last 24 hours since it broke, and many sports fans have been left wondering why it happened.
Barnes spoke about the incident for the first time on Thursday, and explained why he was at Govan’s house in the first place.
“I live 15 minutes away and I was going over to check on my kids because they seemed uncomfortable,” Barnes told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne on Thursday.
He also said the reason for showing up there stemmed from a Facetime conversation with his son, Carter.
“We were on Facetime. I could see him and the look on his face. That was my main reason for going over there.”
He also spoke with the media before the team’s Thursday night game against Maccabi Haifa. He made it a point to say, “We [he and Fisher] were good friends at one point,” which he reiterated multiple times.
He elected not to comment about what broke up their friendship. Barnes went on to say that the facts will come out in time, and he came to Memphis for one reason: to win a championship.
Barnes did touch on how important it is to keep one’s professional and personal lives separate.
It will be interesting to hear what Fisher and Govan have to say about it.