When John Calipari showed up unannounced at Riverview Park, everyone knew Matt Barnes’s twins were on the verge of something special.” Already garnering D-I offers from San Diego and eyes from NBA legends, Isaiah and Carter Barnes commanded center stage. Or they did, until one wrong call at the crescendo of the game led them to a heartbreak loss for the Barnes twins’ Paul George Elite against EL3.

And on a recent episode of All the Smoke, Matt Barnes didn’t shy away from breaking down what went wrong. “We took some on the chin this weekend, man. We lost to our Jermaine O’Neal. So we lost to Marcus Spears (Jr.), shout out on my homeboy Marcus Spears over there ESPN. His son is, I think, top three in, in the 2027 class they beat us at the buzzer, on a bullshit ass call.” Yep, Barnes didn’t point fingers at his kids—instead, the refs caught most of the heat.

The controversial incident took place during the final play. “One of their kids a white boy. He was nice, super athletic. But this kid euro step from the three-point line without a dribble, travel like a motherf—-r, and they called a foul at the buzzer. He hit one free throw and they beat us,” Barnes explained. With John Calipari courtside at the Riverview Park EYBL stop, Isaiah Barnes’s team had eyes on them, but lost 62-61 on a free throw (as per Barnes) after a euro-step no-dribble travel went uncalled.

Though to his credit, he did own up to some faults. “We missed 15 free throws max. We can’t miss fit. Yeah, that was definitely on us, but f— them ref.” Still, Barnes isn’t letting one bad weekend define the summer. In fact, he’s already focused on the next challenge. “Well, but we’ll definitely be ready. Next stop is Augusta, right before Peach’s Jam.”

And with both their dads putting in the work to help the twins improve, don’t be surprised if they bounce back strong.

Two dads are behind Matt Barnes’ sons balling out?

It’s been over a year since Derek Fisher—yes, that Derek Fisher—stopped into the picture as coach for Matt Barnes’ twins. Given their not-so-friendly history, you’d never expect these two to team up for anything, let alone raise hoopers together. But here they are, coaching Barnes’ sons at different levels. And apparently, it’s working. “The dynamic is there, though,” Isaiah admitted. So what does that look like day-to-day?

To begin with, it’s all about balance. “He does a great job. Both dads do. They do a great job of coaching, but still being a father at the same time,” Isaiah said. Even on game days, Fisher reportedly knows when to switch from coach mode to dad mode—a skill not many can master, especially under pressure.

In fact, Isaiah explained how that dual role shows up during the heat of a game: “Like even on the basketball court, when we’re actually in a game, like he’ll give me some like advice as a father instead of as a coach perspective to like, you know, really help me understand it a lot better.” His brother Carter, echoed the same, while giving us a quick breakdown of how the responsibilities are split.

“One coaches us for travel ball. One coaches us for high school,” Carter shared. Sure, the setup isn’t always perfect — “There’s so many times where they tell me something and it’s in through one ear out the other”—but even with a few missed messages, the results speak volumes.

Just look at the numbers. Carter jumped from 7.3 points as a freshman to 11.8 points, along with solid rebounds, assists, and steals. Meanwhile, Isaiah’s been equally dominant, putting up 13.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game over 59 matchups. So yeah, the dads might be doing more than just cheering from the sidelines.