Charles Barkley Sheds Lights On Why He Hasn’t Spoken To Michael Jordan In A Decade: He Got Offended By Something I Said About Him

November 25, 2022 by Tsai-Ann Hill in Sports with 0 Comments

Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan

Charles Barkley Sheds Lights On Why He Hasn’t Spoken To Michael Jordan In A Decade: He Got Offended By Something I Said About Him

Charles Barkley is clarifying the rumors behind his falling out with Michael Jordan.

This week, NBA legend Charles Barkley appeared on Tom Brady’s “Lets Go!” podcast where he was asked if he had any regrets for keeping it real and sharing his truth in interviews in the past. Charles Barkley said:

“I think probably, me and Michael Jordan were best friends, that’s probably the most prominent thing. Michael Jordan, losing his friendship was probably the most prominent thing that’s happened to me.”

The 59-year-old continued:

“But I was being honest about what I thought. I said, ‘Listen, the toughest thing about Michael, he’s got to put better people around him. Because the toughest thing, when you’re famous, they’re on your private jet, you’re buying all the drinks, you’re buying all the dinners. Very few people are gonna be honest with you. And I try to surround myself with people like, ‘Hey, if I’m screwing up, please tell me.'”

The television analyst added:

“And Michael got offended about something I said about him. And we haven’t spoken in probably almost 10 years. And he was my best friend at the time. And I love the dude like a brother and we’re both stubborn and we haven’t talked.”

Michael Jordan

The offending comments are reflected from a ESPN interview back in 2012, where he told The Waddle & Silvy Show about the six time NBA champ. Barkley said at the time:

“I think the biggest problem has been I don’t know if he has hired enough people around him who he will listen to.”

He added:

“One thing about being famous is the people around you, you pay all their bills so they very rarely disagree with you because they want you to pick up the check. They want to fly around on your private jet so they never disagree with you. I don’t think Michael has hired enough people around him who will disagree.”

Barkley also shared that the late Kobe Bryant got really mad at him in the past after the Alabama native said he was disappointed in Bryant’s gameplay in a post-game interview. He admitted:

“One night Kobe Bryant texted me 40 times calling me every name in the book. He starts texting me right after the game. He texted me about 40 times. This is like 5:00 in the morning. I was like dude, pick up the phone and call me.”

He added that he and Bryant mended fences before he passed away. He said:

“I’ve never taken a cheap shot at a guy because I didn’t like him. If you played bad, I can’t get on the TV and tell people you played good! I wish I could say positive thing about everybody all the time. But they just saw the game, I gotta tell the truth.”