Before coming to Carlton, Barker worked as an assistant under Lyon at St Kilda.
He's told SEN, the Fremantle and Carlton coaches share similar qualities.
"Their demand and philosophy in terms of game mechanics (is similar). They're both very defensive coaches, which gives you the absolute greatest opportunity to win the games that matter.
"They seem like pretty stern characters from an outside point of view too, and I think they get editorialised in a certain way from the media.
"But Mick's an affable guy, loves a joke at the right time. But they're both very serious when it comes to getting their footy right."
Barker has given an honest assessment of Carlton's season to date, conceding his side had hoped to be further up the ladder.
But he says the Blues have steadily improved.
"We feel we are a lot more of a competitive unit now.
"With all the top four teams we've been right in the games for upwards of three quarters, we just haven't had that complete understanding and been able to completely deliver on what we've been asked."
