Matt Barnes won't accept 2017 championship ring: 'I got a free ride'
Warning: Story contains coarse language
Matt Barnes was a member of the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors team that defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, but he doesn't think he deserves to be called a champion.
On a recent episode of his "All The Smoke" podcast, Barnes explained why his championship ring is still in the office of Warriors senior vice president of communications, Raymond Ridder.
"I got a free ride, I got a free ring," Barnes said. "So that's when they say NBA champ, I don't count myself as an NBA champ ... the journey is what makes you want to say like, 'Yeah, I helped.' I didn't sweat, I wasn't in the motherfucking dog hole with these dudes. I didn't get to guard LeBron and none of these other Kawhis, so I didn't count my shit."
Barnes joined Golden State in March 2017 after being waived by the Sacramento Kings. He averaged 5.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 20.5 minutes per game for the Warriors in the regular season, but saw just 61 minutes of action in 12 playoff games.