Caps loss to Knicks with ‘assault’
Hours after a crushing defeat to the Knicks, Sacramento Kings forward Matt Barnes allegedly choked a woman at a Manhattan night spot early Monday, law-enforcement sources said.
Police were called to Avenue in Chelsea at around 3:20 a.m. following Barnes’ alleged attack on the 26-year-old victim.
The woman, who was not identified, might be Barnes’ girlfriend — although his rep later sug- gested that she was a stranger.
The NBA player — who has not been arrested — also allegedly “physically assaulted” another woman, 27, and a man, 35, from a table next to Barnes’ crew as they attempted to intervene.
They were both hit with a bottle, but it was not chucked by Barnes, the sources said.
Barnes’ initial beef was with people who were part of his own crew of five to 10 pals at a club table before the fight escalated, the sources said.
“So they get into a fight amongst each other and it spills over to an- other group in close proximity,” a source said, adding that it’s unclear what sparked the dispute.
“This was a wild melee. This was a real good old-fashioned barroom brawl.”
By the time officers arrived at the 10th Avenue hot spot, Barnes , 36, and his buddies, including teammate DeMarcus Cousins, had left, sources said.
Barnes, who last year infamously got into a scuffle with then-Knicks coach Derek Fisher when he caught him with Barnes’ estranged wife, defended himself on Instagram Monday, writing: “There’s always two sides to a story. The side the media consistently tries to paint of me . . . And what actually happened! Don’t believe everything you read.”
A rep for Barnes told TMZ that a woman, who was not identified as his girlfriend, had slapped him in the face after the hoopster accidentally “butt bumped” her in the VIP section of the club and acted in selfdefense when several men intervened.
Barnes was knocked to the ground and choked by one of the men, the rep said, according to TMZ, adding that Cousins jumped in to defend Barnes.
Barnes’ lawyer, Alex Spiro, told The Post, “We believe no crime was committed and will continue to cooperate with the authorities.”
A video obtained by TMZ appears to show Barnes and Cousins outside of the club talking about the brawl. Cousins can be heard saying that Barnes “hit the s--t out of this n---a.”
The fight came hours after the 6foot-7 Barnes stunk up Madison Square Garden, shooting 1-for-11 in the Kings’ 106-98 loss to the Knicks.