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A Second Look at Brent Barry
By Robert Doyen December 08, 2004
 In a season that has seen the Spurs surpass the best start in franchise history with a record of 16-3, the celebrated introduction of Brent Barry to the team has dwindled to a side-note. Beno Udrih is taking his minutes at the backup point guard position and Devon Brown’s heightened performance of late is draining his time at the reserve shooting guard spot.
But as the Spurs look at a rematch with Barry’s former team, the Seattle Supersonics--who are having a shockingly impressive season of their own, it is time to examine Brent’s value to San Antonio off the court.
Brent Barry embodies all of the personality traits that San Antonio fans have come to expect from their Spurs. Barry’s commitment to sustaining a positive personal life in companion with his basketball life fits perfectly into the mold created by players like David Robinson, Avery Johnson and Tim Duncan who value morality, familial responsibilities and personal growth as much as they value on-court performance.
Perhaps the best example of Barry’s selflessness occurred when he turned down an offer to compete in the All-Star game’s three point shooting competition. Because he had won the slam dunk competition two years earlier he had a chance to become the first player to win both contests. He chose instead to spend the weekend with his family on the beach. That sort of sacrifice is rarely seen in any profession, much less professional sports.
Part of Brent’s desire to spend a lot of quality time with his family is attributable to his turbulent early years. His father, Rick Barry, who won an NBA championship in 1975 with the Golden State Warriors, and mother split up when he was young. Brent spent a lot of time with his father during his youngest years as a ball boy for Golden State, but as a result of the divorce and Rick’s constant traveling as a sportscaster for CBS Barry never had a strong male presence in his life.
Neither did his three brothers. Yet somehow they were all still able to achieve at the highest levels of basketball. Scooter Barry won the NCAA tournament with Kansas and became a star player in Germany. His brother Drew Barry played professionally in the NBA and Jon Barry currently plays for the Atlanta Hawks.
Though his father’s genes obviously had much to do with it, Barry gives much of the credit for the success of the brothers Barry to his mother, Pam Connolly.
"My mom is definitely my role model," Barry said in an interview with Jim Moore of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. "The values and the morals she instilled in us ... She did a good job of raising a bunch of hellions on her own."
Rick Barry is now trying to reconcile with his children. Divorce is never easy on anyone involved and there is much bitterness that runs deep, but slowly Rick is trying to come back into the lives of his children.
“Part of life is you have to let bygones be bygones,” said Jon in an interview with Chris Tomasson of the Rocky Mountain News, “and we’re trying to establish a relationship now.”
Brent has moved on from the drama of his parents’ divorce and instead of sulking has developed a charming charisma which landed him on 2003’s NBA All Interview Team. Few players around the league are as quotable and candid as Brent.
For example, when trying to explain why the Seattle Supersonics had such success with him in the lineup he replied, "Obviously, I'm just a darn good player." And when asked if swimsuit modeling was a sport he commented, "No, it‘s not a sport. But what some of my friends do with the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition might be called a sport."
Barry has gotten himself involved already with the San Antonio community. As a part of the NBA’s read to achieve program Brent read a book to a group of elementary school children. And on December 20th Barry will appear at Ingram Park Mall along with the Silver Dancers for a question and answer session with Spurs fans.
The Spurs normally take about a quarter of the season to come together as a team. This year, with so many returning players, it appears that only Brent Barry is struggling so far as he tries to find his place among his teammates. When his shot starts falling he’ll start to earn his minutes back in the Spurs rotation. But as he goes through the process of gelling with the rest of the team it is important to remember that his place in San Antonio extends far beyond the basketball court.
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