This is your third visit to Seeds of Peace. How strongly do you feel about what you guys are accomplishing there?
Barry: "Well, I don't know that we, the players, are accomplishing that much. It's more a case of whatever comes out of the camp comes out of the hands of some very capable young people; boys and girls and young men and women who come out here for one reason, and that's to help make change. There's added motivation for them to change because of the immediacy of what they're dealing with."

Barry is amazed by the strength and ambition exhibited by the teens at Seeds of Peace. (Jennifer Pottheiser/NBAE/Getty Images)

What has surprised you most about working with Seeds of Peace?
Barry: "Again, probably just the confidence that these kids have in what they're trying to get done. You can not diminish any of the light that they're trying to put upon a situation that's going on for them every day. The task that they have in hand is a very large one, one that's seemingly impossible, but they understand that if anything is to change, it has to come from within. They understand it's with how kids are taught. With ambition."

The tensions in that region obviously run very high. Is it hard for the Israeli and Palestinian teens to warm up to each other at the start?
Barry: "Absolutely. (The NBA players) get there late into their three-week session, but we've heard stories about just how high the tensions can run at first. The first couple of nights at the camp are supposedly very, very intense. Israeli kids and Palestinian kids are forced to sleep in the same bungalows and cabins, right across the room from one another. Each of these rooms has security people in there, sleeping in the buildings with them.

"The problem is that these kids have been taught, or think, from a very young age that these other kids are against them or trying to get them. They don't get much sleep the first few nights. Then, during the first few co-existence meetings, there's a professional counselor that sits with the groups, because the first few meetings are very intense. Everything they experience can run counter to a lifetime of what they've been raised with. They just don't believe that they're just kids on the other side and that, in a way, they're looking in the mirror when they talk to them.

"The amazing thing is also how well educated these kids are about everything that's going on. Their perspectives are other-worldly, because they're subjected to so much more violence and conflict. Their education is really accelerated due to exceptional circumstances."

You're quoted as saying the camp makes you "believe that there is hope." Can you expand upon this?
Barry: "Like I said, just sitting in these meetings and having meals with the kids; the way that they all seem to understand ... I guess it's like the problem with divorced parents in the U.S., and the only way to break that cycle is to get married and keep your own nuclear family intact. These kids feel that way; that they have to break the cycle of violence and separation. They feel that they need to change the political and ethical views from the inside. They understand this and they embrace it."

So do you think they harbor resentment towards the generations that led them down this path?
Barry: "I don't know if you can say that there's resentment, but they feel that there's a great deal of naivety in past generations. It's great because after the camp they go down to D.C. and draw up a peace-keeping document, so they have a means of officially expressing what they've learned. Then when they go back home, there are Seeds of Peace centers and facilities where they can try to keep in touch with the people they made bonds with in the camp. Obviously, they can't make these connections too public for fear of their lives, basically. But it's very cool to see them maintain these continuing dialogues after the camp is over with. You see so many kids return to the camp as counselors and such, just because the experience is so positive."

On to basketball. What are you most excited about in joining the Spurs?
Barry: "A few things. I think I have a chance to fit in well, they're contending for a title, and they have Tim Duncan. Just knowing that this team needs somebody to come in and play; that's what I'm looking forward to doing, just bringing what I can to the table.

The Spurs' overall selflessness was a big factor in Barry's decision to sign with San Antonio. (Spurs.com)

"I love the system (Coach) Popovich has down there. A few of the guys I talked to, who play there or have played there, love it. Also, you're only as good as your best player, and they don't come much better than Tim Duncan. He's a great guy on and off the court. Just to have someone like that that I can put my uniform on next to every night was a big selling point for me. Plus, you look at the team situation overall and it's pretty impressive. They've got a bunch of guys who are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their situation intact, to preserve whatever good karma they have. As a case in point, you could say that what's happened in L.A. (with the Lakers losing Shaq and Phil Jackson) is a completely different direction."

What was the hardest thing about leaving Seattle?
Barry: "Seattle's such a great city with great fans. I'd been there five years, which was over half of my career. I had a home there, my son was born there. My wife and I had great relationships on and off the court, so it wasn't for anything having to do with the 'situation' itself, it's just that with going to San Antonio, this was an opportunity for me to play somewhere where I can just go and play. The coaching is there; there's nothing extracurricular going on; a lot of the other factors are thrown out. This way, I just go to San Antonio and bring what I can to the table. It's a pretty easy sell in my book, especially when you consider that this is a team that conceivably came within 0.4 seconds of going all the way."

Many experts have said you're the difference that will lift the Spurs to a title this season. Does that put added pressure on you?
Barry: "It's a nice compliment, but you never know what can happen with a team until everyone comes in. As a case in point, look at the Lakers with all those guys last season. You never know what you can do together and what you can accomplish as a team until you get down there and get settled with those guys. Once we get there, it should calm everyone's nerves a bit; the players, the coaches and the fan base. I'm just hungry to win and that will override anything else that can be said about this coming season."

With the Lakers losing Shaq, the Jazz making moves, and the Nuggets getting K-Mart, do you think the hierarchy in the West is shifting?
Barry: "Well, things are shifting, but I still think you have to look to the West in terms of what kind of dominance they still have. Not to discount Detroit and what the top teams in the East can do, but in terms of the overall quality of the conference, the West is still pretty impressive. I mean, any team that has Kobe on its roster is going to be pretty competitive and will have a chance to win every night; let alone with Lamar Odom and those guys. Then, Denver also bolstered its frontline, and Houston brought Tracy (McGrady) in to play with Yao (Ming).

"The only thing is that there are question marks with all of those teams. How will they play? How will they mesh? The familiarity and systems already in place with teams like Minnesota and Sacramento might give them a leg up on the rest of the conference. But one of those other teams could be a surprise. Phoenix could be a surprise. Portland, with those guys, you never know how they're going to play. Minnesota and San Antonio will be formidable, though. It's nice to be on a team that's mentioned like that."

The Barry family is well known to hoops fans everywhere. Jon's still in the NBA, but what are your other brothers, Drew and Scooter, up to?
Barry: "Scooter has carved out a nice career for himself in Germany. He played over there last season, and will be over there again this year. Drew was maybe going to try and play this season, but he might get a real job. He's in Atlanta right now, so chances are he'll become a working dog. Maybe he'll become a member of the media or something."