Charles Barkley sure knows one thing or two about Michael Jordan. They battled in the NBA Finals, teamed up for Team USA, and had a close relationship before Chuck called him out for his job in charge of the Charlotte Hornets.
Barkley revealed that the two hadn’t talked ever since, stating that Jordan didn’t care for the fact that he criticized him. We all know MJ is perhaps the most competitive human being ever, so this isn’t exactly a surprise.
With that in mind, it seems like His Airness might not want to have anything to do with Chuck any time soon, either, as Barkley recently made a strong GOAT argument for non-other than LeBron James.
Charles Barkley Says LeBron James Is The Greatest Story In Sports History
“I will say this about LeBron. I think his story is the greatest story in sports history,” Barkley told Sports Illustrated. “What I mean by that is, you look at other great players who went directly from high school to the pros. Kobe Bryant struggled, Kevin Garnett struggled, Tracy McGrady struggled, Dwight Howard struggled. LeBron is the only one who had success from Day One. He was really good Day One. He’s obviously up here now. But the most amazing thing about him, in this 24-hour news cycle, cellphones, internet, he’s never gotten in trouble.”
“No scandal,” Barkley continued.“To be, number one, ready at 18, to where he is 20 years later, the greatest scorer in NBA history. I think it’s the greatest story in sports history. For a guy to be that good from Day One and never screw up is amazing.”
Chuck is usually biased, but he’s got a big point right here. You may or may not think that James is the greatest player in NBA history, and that’s perfectly fine. But his behavior off the court has surely set a standard for athletes that came after him.