Following an epic postseason collapse against the Houston Rockets, the LA Clippers traded away Matt Barnes this summer, essentially swapping him out for Lance Stephenson.
According to Barnes, he never saw eye-to-eye with Clippers head coach and team president Doc Rivers.
Barnes promises fireworks on Nov.9, which happens to be the first time he gets to face the Clips as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies.
Per NBA.com:
On that date, Barnes and his new team, the Memphis Grizzlies, will visit L.A. and his old team. Well, Barnes says he isn’t looking forward to playing against the Clippers specifically. […] “I can’t wait to play against Doc Rivers,” he emphasizes.
Truth be told, Barnes wanted to stay and finish his career with the Clippers but knew that would never happen, knew it almost from the day when he got a new coach two years ago. […] “Doc never wanted me,” he said. “He couldn’t wait to get rid of me. Doc and I never saw eye to eye. He tried to get me out of there the second he got there, so it wasn’t too surprising to me what happened when things went south.”
“I was the first trade of the summer,” said Barnes. “Like I said, he couldn’t wait.” […] Barnes is now 35, no longer a starter and part of the Memphis committee that gobbles up minutes at small forward — nothing new with that problematic position on the Grizzlies. Just as Rivers quickly pulled the trigger on Barnes, the Grizzlies couldn’t wait to get rid of Rudy Gay and his shot selection and heavy salary. And yet, here the Grizzlies are, three years later, still searching in vain for his replacement.
