Barnes' play finally being recognized by people besides me

It's no secret that I love Matt Barnes. And I'm sure people are sick of me writing/tweeting about him but, oh well.


I have followed him since UCLA and his time in Golden State and thought he would be a perfect fit for the Suns when I wrote about him at the end of last season.


I even had the fortunate chance to meet him and talk about our tattoos.


I've written several times about his impact on the Suns this year and still I get people Tweeting me saying that Barnes is overrated and he was better in Golden State. I quickly correct them in a loving, defensive way like Barnes is a personal friend. Luckily, other people agree with me. : )


But who really cares what Ben of Ben's Suns Blog thinks? I could talk about him until I'm blue in the face to try and get people to see the value he brings to the Suns. To me, it's apparent and obvious in his play if people really watch.


Sometimes it takes the media to get people to see. Paul Coro wrote a column Friday about how big Barnes has been for the Suns this year. Coro writes, "Part of the reason the Suns signed Matt Barnes this summer was because he was a decent shooter. False advertising. He's been one of the NBA's top shooters so far."


That isn't an exaggeration. The article states that Barnes has already made almost as many three pointers (51) as he did all of last season (52). He's shooting close to 44% from the three point line and averaging a career high 13 points a game. Not to mention he is fourth in the league in three point consistency.


Perhaps more important, he can be placed in virtually any spot on the court. Last night, he was solid backing up Nash at PG and was phenomenal defending J.R. Smith in the 2nd half. He is the Suns version of James Posey, and is a great person to have in the locker room. He can rebound, pass the ball (love his full-court launches to Grant Hill), and defend virtually anyone.


Here is a good video that the Suns did for a pre-game feature a while back. Some great quotes from Matt and Grant Hill.




A great interview on Suns.com Nothin' But Net:




Last but not least, here are links to a few other Barnes related posts I've written:

http://benssunsblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/barnes-to-start-for-suns.html

http://benssunsblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/suns-add-matt-barnes.html

http://benssunsblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/suns-preview-part-1-coaches-and-players.htmlhttp://benssunsblog.blogspot.com/2008/11/impressive-win-over-blazers.html

http://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2008/11/26/673683/suns-fans-this-year-be-tha