If you were impressed by Matt Barnes’ toughness and shooting Monday night, you weren’t alone. Barnes led the team making 66.7 percent of his field goals and all of his seven free throw attempts.

He didn’t back down from challenges (partially evidenced by his technical foul) and provided that toughness Orlando has been criticized for missing in the past.

Stan Van Gundy said today Barnes was the best player Monday night. That’s a pretty lofty statement when you’ve got four All-Stars on your team.

“I knew what he could do on the floor and I thought he’d be a good fit for us,” Dwight Howard said. “So far he’s just done everything the right way.”

Barnes will start tonight along with Brandon Bass. The two will replace Mickael Pietrus and Rashard Lewis, who started at forward on Monday night in Dallas. The other three starters will remain the same — Vince Carter, Howard and Jameer Nelson.


Click here to read the full article – By Tania Ganguli of Orlando Sentinel

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