Eaze is coaching people every step of the way in taking their business vertical: NBA Champion and Eaze Board Advisor

Matt Barnes, NBA champion, entrepreneur, and cannabis advocate joins the Yahoo Finance Live panel to discuss his role as an Eaze board member and the importance of diversity in the cannabis industry.

Video Transcript

ZACK GUZMAN: It's been an exciting time, though, for a lot of cannabis advocates out there. As we COVID earlier this month, not only did the House vote for the first time on decriminalizing marijuana at the national level, but the NBA also recently announced it would be eliminating random marijuana testing for players this upcoming season, as well.

So joining us now for more on that is the former NBA player, champion, and new advisor to the board of directors at Eaze, a leading cannabis platform there. Matt Barnes joins us right now. Matt, good to see you, man. Thanks for coming on.

MATT BARNES: Thank you.

ZACK GUZMAN: I guess--

MATT BARNES: Thank you guys for having me.

ZACK GUZMAN: --first, since we were just talking-- we were just talk about the NBA, man. So I guess, first, I'll just get your reaction to the league suspending those tests. As a former player, I mean, and a cannabis advocate here, how big is that move?

MATT BARNES: I think it's hats off to, obviously, Michele Roberts and Adam Silver. This is something I've personally been fighting, and my former teammate and business owner Al Harrington of Viola, have been fighting for a while. This is something that, you know, has been used, it hasn't really been a secret, for a long time in the NBA, and we've always been punished for it. You know, and to me the alternative is opioids or alcohol. But I was someone, throughout my 15-year career, used it as needed, and it really helped me.

So to see-- you know, I'm three years removed from the NBA now-- and see that they're starting to make progress, obviously with research behind it, it feels today.

AKIKO FUJITA: And Matt, have we reached a tipping point on the understanding of cannabis, you think, in the league? I mean, it seems like you believe this should be a permanent move. Do you think the league, given their experience in the playoffs, and now this upcoming season, are likely to come on board with that move?

MATT BARNES: I think so, but I think it's slowly but surely. You know, usually the NBA is ahead of the curve when it comes to this. But we were actually kind of at the back of the pack. But I think it was just because we really want to do our due diligence and our research.

You know, the Players Association hired an individual doctor, the NBA hired an individual doctor, to do their studies. And like I said, it's finally starting to become backed with medical research. You know, me as a player, and former players, we could have talked until we're blue in the face. But until there's actually some medical data backing up what we're saying, you know, we weren't really moving the needle.

So now that the research is on board with what the players are saying, you know, as a commissioner and as an owner of the league, you always want to kind of listen to your players and have a pulse on what your players are thinking and feeling. And I think the NBA is finally doing that.

ZACK GUZMAN: And Matt, you've been pretty outspoken, you've been pretty open about it, too. I mean, when we talk about your use and your testing in the league, and kind of trying to skirt it, it sounded like there's a good amount of effort in trying to test negative for these tests. I mean, you talked about it on your podcast, "All The Smoke," too.

MATT BARNES: Yeah.

ZACK GUZMAN: How much added strain on the players is that, really? When you talk to players who are still in the league right now, are there a lot of them who are mentioning to you that, look, this is actually a pretty big weight off my shoulders.

MATT BARNES: Oh, it's a huge weight. You know, I've been able to talk to a few players, and it was kind of just an exhale. I think they started, obviously, with the bubble at the end of last season, where they pulled back on testing, and allowed players to kind of do it at their leisure, without worrying about consequences.

And you know, to me, being in the NBA is obviously a blessing. But there's a lot of stresses and give and take that come with that. So to me, this is just one less stress taken off the plate of players, where they can comfortably use it as needed. And you know, at the end of the day, it's for what-- everyone is different. But I said, for the guys that choose to use it, it's, you know, it really helps them.

AKIKO FUJITA: Matt, let's talk about the state of the league right now, as it relates to TV viewership. No surprise, very well documented, their ratings were down in a significant way, especially during the playoffs. The finals down about 50% decline here. What do you think has contributed to that decline, and what do you think the league can do to attract more viewers?

MATT BARNES: I think that was kind of a two-tier situation. One, our former president was trying to hijack the movement and make it about something which it wasn't. You know, we're 75% African-American in the NBA. And we were doing, we felt, was our part to speak up, use our voice, and use our platform.

And then, on the flip side, we kind of had a baseball schedule during the bubble. You know, usually you come home and basketball is on at 7:00 o'clock. Or sometimes, on the East coast, it's on at 10:00 o'clock. But we were doing noon games and 2:00 o'clock games, when a lot of our viewers were either-- kids in school, or people that would normally watch the games are at work.

So I think, like I said, I think it was a two-headed monster that kind of knocked our ratings down. And we're just in a crazy time. You know what I mean? So although we love sports, you know, sports is not necessarily a priority, considering everything that's going on in this country.

So I think that when we start to head to some sort of normalcy, I think we'll see our ratings continue to climb back to normal. But that's just in the United States. You've got to think the NBA is a global game now.

So it's not just the viewers in the United States. It's a game that travels around the globe now. So I think, in a matter of time, the ratings will be fine.

ZACK GUZMAN: Yeah, Matt, that's what's kind of interesting about cannabis reform right now, because it is something that I think very much-- as we saw in the House debate-- very much at the center of criminal justice reform, as well as kind of diversity initiatives. As I said, you joined the board at Eaze. They've been pretty active in that with their Momentum business accelerator. $50,000 in grants going to underrepresented business leaders there. You're going to be tasked with supporting the second year of that program here.

But how important is cannabis to you, when it comes to maybe being a tool to address some of those inequalities, when we look at the economic divide here among racial groups in this country, and the role that cannabis and the criminalization and arrests on that front may have played in all that throughout the nation's history?

MATT BARNES: I think it's big. You know, we missed the gold rush. We missed prohibition. Cannabis is something we can't miss, considering people of color have been the ones that have been affected by the most.

You know, you hear a lot of these big companies that are really making waves in this space, but not necessarily giving back when it comes to the community. And I think that's what drew me to the Momentum program over at Eaze. I was fortunate enough to kind of play alongside of it last year, and came in towards the end, unofficially, last year, and met the applicants and spoke to them, and just saw the excitement and enthusiasm in their eyes, giving this opportunity that Eaze gave them.

So now that I'm full time, you know, I'm really pushing the envelope and continuing to use my platform to spread this message. It's obviously-- you know, a lot of people are talking about what they're doing in this space, but not too many people are actually giving tangible worth to these people, and also providing other resources. You know, giving money is great, but we need education.

A lot of these people, this is the first time actually having a business, you know. So you can't just hand some people some money and say, hey, go make this happen. Or get a predatorial deal, where you're kind of signing your life away and you're letting other people do it.

I think what I love about Eaze is Eaze is coaching these people every step of the way. And also giving them access, once they feel they're ready, to actually real, big-time capital. They can really take their business vertical.

ZACK GUZMAN: In terms of, I guess, the changing league views-- just to go full circle here-- now that it isn't going to be something they're going to test for, at least not when it comes to repeat offenders, but for just random testing. Do you expect more players to maybe come out and join you in being an advocate for this here? What has kind of been that take-- if you still have to worry about the commissioner? What else is going on in the league? What's your sense on that?

MATT BARNES: I think there's a few guys that have been bold enough. But obviously, you kind of have to be really secure and set. You know, Kevin Durant is a superstar that has spoke on cannabis and has been very outspoken on where he feels it should be normalized and not penalized.

But I kind of think it's going to be a crawling process before we can walk with that. I'm hoping that, you know, obviously, I know that there's guys that are currently in the NBA that are invested in this space. But it's kind of, like, it's somewhat not talked about.

But like I said, it's going to take a handful of superstars, like it normally does, to kind of open the door for everyone else to kind of say, OK, hey, you know, I am a cannabis advocate. Because a lot of people not only have to worry about what the league thinks-- which the league is loosening it up-- but then, also, endorsements. You know what I mean? It's starting to make its way, but it really hasn't fully come full circle yet. So it's kind of still kind of a thin-ice situation.

So as a retired athlete, I'm going to continue to use my platform, and kind of be a shield for these guys in continuing to push the envelope so it becomes more normalized.

AKIKO FUJITA: NBA champion and now entrepreneur, Matt Barnes. It's good to talk to you today. Thanks so much for your time.

MATT BARNES: Thank you guys for having me. Have a great day.