Q&A: Charles Barkley

Courtesy of Richard Deitsch

Last week we saw a lot of writers and broadcasters criticize you for your comments about analytics in basketball. Are they right?

I’ve had at least four or five NBA coaches call me loving what I said. I saw Mark Cuban said something. I also saw a couple of coaches say analytics are a small part of it but the big thing is what Charles said is correct. So I think more people agree with me who know basketball than disagree.

What….

Oh, my God, did you see that? [Barkley is reacting to a dunk by Cavs center Timofey Mozgov against the Bulls].

The Cavs are playing much better.

The big thing was Mozgov. They were too small. I said tonight [on TNT] that Anderson Varejao getting hurt was the best thing to happen to the Cavs. They might not have made that trade if he did not get hurt.

So is it just Mozgov’s size that game-changed things?

Yes, his size. I like him as a player but his size makes a difference. He is a big guy. Listen, Kevin Love is a small power forward. Him and Varejao are undersized power forwards. It looks different when you drive down the lane against two big guys.

Why do people react so vociferously to what you say?

Because I think people want their subject to be right no matter what. People like for Charles to be honest unless he says something different from them. That’s all it is. I’m pretty sure you get criticism.

All the time.

People like you as long as you agree with them. But that doesn’t really bother me.

Do you have any interest in talking to Daryl Morey?

Not at all. I have nothing against Daryl Morey. But what annoys me about Daryl Morey is they [the Rockets] go out and get James Harden. Then, they go get Dwight Howard. They go get Trevor Ariza. They go after Carmelo Anthony. They go after Chris Bosh. How is that analytics, just getting better players? Just explain it to me. Seriously. I am willing to deal with common sense. I mean, come on. They are just bringing in better players. How is that analytical?

Dean Smith passed away last week. Did you spend any time with him?

Michael [Jordan] introduced me to him and one time we played golf. It was really refreshing that someone you really respect from a distance was just as nice. He was still coaching at the time. I never played against him in college. We didn’t talk a lot, we just played golf. But he was just so nice. I’m a basketball junkie and it was like if I got a chance to hang it with Phil Jackson, or John Wooden, or Pat Riley, or Gregg Popovich. That would be pretty cool. Dean Smith didn’t think he was “Dean Smith.” 

What about Jerry Tarkanian? What was your relationship like with him?

A couple of times we had dinner and it was the same way as Dean Smith. I hope he gets the admiration the next couple of years. My opinion is just my opinion but to win at UNLV ain’t the same as winning at North Carolina or Duke. You are not getting the blue-chip guys. His best player was Larry Johnson, a JUCO. His next best player was probably Reggie Theus. He’s not getting McDonald's All-Americans. I think he was underrated as a coach. There was also something that came up last week with Popovich.

What was that? 

People were asking if he’s the best coach ever. I said for me he might be. Let me explain why: Look at his 15-year window. They’ve won 50 games every year, they’ve won five championships and look at the way he has won them. He won the first one with David Robinson, he wins the next one with Robinson and Tim Duncan. Then he wins with Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili as maybe his best players. Now he wins with f---ing Kawhi Leonard. That is remarkable. How about him willing to change?

What about Red Auerbach?

I don’t want to judge Red because I don’t know. But to be able to win championships that many different ways—Popovich went from big dominance to point guard dominance and now he is doing it with a small forward. That is pretty amazing.

What did you think of the long profile published on you by The Undefeated?

I’m not sure how to answer that question. You have to be more specific.

Okay, let’s start with this. Was it fair and accurate?

Was it fair? I think it was fair and I like [writer] Jesse [Washington.] But I need a specific question.

Were you comfortable with the context of the piece, a focus on how you think about race in this country and how people think about you when it comes to race?

Listen, man, I have always said the same thing. Racism is here, and will always exist but we can’t use it as a crutch. I think it is important for me to speak out on social issues. Sometimes people will agree with me. Sometimes people will disagree with me. I don’t take that personally.

You are one of the few people on sports television who consistently talks about social issues. Why?

I think it is a great forum—because you have the voice. There are other guys who don’t have that voice, and are not on national television. But it is a double-edged sword. Because any time it comes to race, people like your opinion if they agree with you and if they disagree with you, they don’t like your opinion. But I am willing to speak because I think I can answer the questions [fairly] and honestly.

How comfortable are you talking about the 2016 presidential race?

I am paying close attention to the political situation. I have always voted Democratic. But I like some of the Republicans this time around. I like Chris Christie. I like Jeb Bush. I like those guys.

What about Hillary Clinton?

Well, I just told you I was thinking about voting Republican (laughs). But I was very disappointed in Chris Christie the other day on the measles thing. It is a shame that these guys are afraid of just answering the question and trying to make everyone agree with you.

You have a daughter. Was she vaccinated?

Yes. But they answered the question and started getting blowback and criticism and then change up. I’m like, dude, your opinion is just your f---ing opinion. I don’t understand why you answer a question and think everyone is going to agree with you. You can’t live your life like that.

What is Charles Barkley Avenue in Leeds, Alabama, like?

Projects and my mom’s house. I am there a lot. My mom is still there.

What is your involvement in that area?

I gave my high school $1 million and another school in that area $1 million. My goal is to send as many kids to college as possible. I don’t do stuff so people will say Charles Barkley is a good guy. I want my hometown to be better. One of the problems is we marginalize a lot of black kids. They think they can only play sports and be entertainers. I got lucky. I hit the lottery of life with basketball. But I still think the best way for people to be successful is academics. Leeds was a great place to grow up.

One of the interesting things about Jesse’s story was he talked and reported on your fitness level during your NBA career. I wonder if you had the best trainers in the world today, how much better would you have been?

Listen, I think after I got in shape in Philly, I was in great shape. I think I was in great shape in Phoenix. My first couple of years in Houston I was pretty good and after that I started breaking down. The only regret I have is I would have been traded out of Philly sooner because my last two years there were miserable. I was going to be traded every week. I finally had enough and said I’m not playing here anymore. So I would have left Philly two years sooner. They once had me on the cover of the Sporting News one year with six different uniforms because everyone was trying to get me. 

Was there any other team than Phoenix that was close to getting you?

I got traded to the Lakers one day [in 1992] and they retracted the deal.

No way.

Yeah. The Sixers backed out. It was going crazy for two weeks so I knew it would come down to Portland, [the] Lakers or Phoenix. So I get a call from my agent one morning and he said, “Philly has traded you to the Lakers.” So I went to lunch and started drinking. I’m f---ing so excited that I am going to the Lakers. Three hours later I get a f---ing phone call from my agent saying that the Sixers backed out of the deal. I said, “Oh, s--t, I’m feeling pretty good right now.” So I went out and played that night. 

How did you play?

I played pretty well. I wasn’t blasted, just a couple of drinks at lunch. I mean, I was excited to get the hell out of Philly.

Does doing Inside The NBA ever get boring?

Yes. We are on from 8 to 2:30 in the morning but we only work about an hour. Normally, we do five minutes before the game, halftime, and 30-45 minute show after the game. It gets boring, and I have been doing it for 15-16 years. That’s why I like going out to do games [as an analyst]. You are full of energy, the crowd is into it.

Are you excited about working on the NCAA tournament again for Turner and CBS?

Yes. I always look forward to the tournament. The tournament, the Olympics and the Super Bowl, you have to watch all of those.

Think Kentucky will go undefeated and win it all?

I think they will go undefeated during the regular season, but you can beat them in the tournament. You only have to beat them once. They will be the clear-cut favorite but they only have to have one bad day. I look at their SEC schedule and they are not losing a game in the regular season.

How legit is Golden State as a title contender?

I do not think they can win it all. I think they are too small. I don’t think you can win a championship shooting jumpers. It also depends on who they play. But I have said the same thing for 10-15 years: I don’t think you can win a title shooting jumpers. Their two best players are guards and I don’t think you can make enough jump shots in a seven-game series against a really good team. Let me tell you something, they do not want to see Oklahoma City in the first round. That is a bad matchup for them. One of those guards is going to get into foul trouble guarding Russell Westbrook.

How much better is Cleveland now than a couple of months ago?

Once they got Mozgov they went from being a little team to a big team. So it is different with Mozgov, but I still think if you asked me today, I would still go with the Bulls in the East. Cleveland is right there, though.

Is there a person that you have yet to meet that you’ve always wanted to meet?

One of my biggest regrets ever was not taking the time to go to South Africa to meet Nelson Mandela. That is a big regret of mine. I should have figured out a way.

What about someone alive today?

Somebody I would like to meet today? King Abdullah (II) from Jordan.

That’s interesting and unexpected.

Well, that’s only in the last week. Because I think his actions when they (ISIS) burned that kid [a Jordanian military pilot] alive, I thought his actions were heroic. He was like, “No, you cannot do that to my people.” I wish President Obama was like that sometimes. I do. I think that is the way we have to treat ISIS. We can’t keep thinking it will go away. I thought it was heroic what Abdullah did.

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Kenny Smith's open letter to Charles Barkley about Ferguson

Dear Chuck,

I hope this finds you in the way I always see you, in great spirits, with great joy and full of life. There are some things I want to openly say to you that sometimes in conversation get lost.

Firstly I lied!  You ARE the greatest Power Forward of all time. It’s not (Tim) Duncan or (Karl) Malone, they had size and height that you weren’t blessed with and you never had near the talent around you that they were blessed to have. Contrarily you took your teams to similar heights. Secondly, you are a champion in my book. Effort and determination is what makes a champion, not a ring.

Lastly, you are the most entertaining person in sports television (partly because I throw you so many assists lol).

However, what I consistently find interesting is how writers and media members view your insights in politics, and now race relations, with the same reverence as your insights in sports.

They did it in the Trayvon Martin trial and now with Mike Brown and the decision in Ferguson. It’s not that you shouldn’t ever have an opinion, but you are often quoted alongside the likes of Al Sharpton and even President Obama. I would hope that Sharpton or President Obama would never be referenced with you when picking the next NBA Champs!

The body of work that our Black Civil Rights leaders put in by planning, executing and activating does not justify you being in the conversation. While your body of work on the court very few compare to nor should be mentioned when you are giving your expert analysis. Again, I respect that you have an opinion on Ferguson. And here’s mine.

The question must be asked: Why is there so much distrust in the police and the legal system from the African American community? Without manifesting what the effects of slavery still have today, Dec 1st still marks only 59 years since Rosa Parks sat on that memorable bus. Many of our parents and grandparents have lived through those times and have passed those stories on to all of us. Those civil rights changes were at one time the law! They were not illegal.

So did the protection of the law by the courts and police make it right? Obviously not, so as African Americans we still know and feel that there are laws and jurisdictions that severely penalize the poor and, most importantly, African Americans greater than any other group. Some laws were initially made without us as equals in mind; that’s just the facts. So the thought process that it’s not for us or by us will unfortunately lead to distrust.

When someone is in “the struggle”, which many of our black communities are in, they are living with a lack of educational facilities, high unemployment and poor recreational facilities. The masses involved in “the struggle” will react in several ways. They can overcome it, challenge it, live in it, or fall victim to it … For those of us who are decades removed from “the struggle” because of our life through sports or business, we now have to acknowledge that every option listed exists. If not, then we are the ignorant ones.

That leads me to the looters and civilians burning buildings which you referred to as “scumbags”.  Here’s an analogy: If you put 100 people on an island with no food, no water, no hope of a ship coming, then some will overcome it and be resourceful, some will live in it, others will panic and others will show horrific character, which is wrong. But not to understand that all alternatives are possible is wrong as well.

I was also disheartened to see the reaction of burning buildings and looters by some. However, when you are in “The Struggle” to not expect that that potential reaction is foolish on our part.

The real issue is learning to positively manage your anger so you can be heard.  It’s not that they are “scumbags”, their emotions won’t allow them to rationally think through their anger. I applaud that you have done a great job in your anger management in recent times … but not always.

Mike Brown wasn’t about race relations, nor Trayvon Martin or even Hurricane Katrina for that matter. It’s about trust. Do I trust you to help me off the island? If so, do you have my best interests at heart? Do I trust that you will you send a ship or allow me access to build my own ship?

And you were right Chuck, let’s not discredit that there are great police officers in all neighborhoods, but let’s not credit that we shouldn’t have doubt.

See you Thursday night!

Kenny Smith

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An Open Letter To Charles Barkley

Courtesy of Etan Thomas

Dear Charles,

Let me say first that you are among the basketball greats. I remember rooting for you in the ’93 Championship Series against the Bulls along with one of my hometown heroes Richard Dumas. You have achieved a level of success on the court that will be cemented in the basketball history books permanently. Eleven NBA All-Star Game appearances, twice All-Star MVP, once voted NBA MVP, one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. Dream Team, two-time inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. You are basketball royalty.

Your book Who’s Afraid of a Large Black Man? is sitting on my bookshelf right now. It’s a powerful book that takes on the issue of race and racism in a way that many would’ve shied away from.

“Racism,” you said, “is the biggest cancer of my lifetime. And I know I can’t cure the cancer, but doesn’t somebody have to attack it?”

In Who’s Afraid of a Large Black Man? you compiled a very impressive list of fascinating opinions and personal stories from then-Senator Obama, Michael Wilbon, Tiger Woods, Morgan Freeman and many other famous personalities on their ideas about race and other issues in America. Your words were to the point, with little of your trademark humor. It’s clear that the audience you most hoped to reach with this book were young black men and women, and I commend you for using your celebrity status and influence to positively effect black youth.

You have never been afraid to speak your mind and I commend you for that. But with that comes great responsibility.

During an interview on 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, the day after the Ferguson decision was announced, host Mike Missanelli asked you to express your thoughts about it and why “black America” didn’t trust the ruling. Your response was quite surprising to me. You said: “The true story came out from the grand jury testimony.” You explained that you were made aware of “key forensic evidence, and several black witnesses that supported Officer Darren Wilson’s story…”

You went on to say:

[W]e have to be really careful with the cops, because if it wasn’t for the cops we would be living in the Wild, Wild West in our neighborhoods…we can’t pick out certain incidentals that don’t go our way and act like the cops are all bad…. Do you know how bad some of these neighborhoods would be if it wasn’t for the cops?

You continued to refer to the Ferguson looters as “scumbags,” and further praised police officers who work in black neighborhoods, and reiterated that you support the decision made by the grand jury not to indict officer Darren Wilson in the Michael Brown shooting.

Mainstream America was falling over themselves with joy at your statements. They couldn’t be happier.

The headline from Young Conservatives read, “Charles Barkley Speaks The Truth about Ferguson, Calls Out Media, And It’s Epic.”

The Tea Party Network wrote, “Former NBA star Charles Barkley slams Ferguson rioters, left stream media and Obama.”

When the wolf begins to praise the sheep, it would be wise for the sheep to undergo some serious self-evaluation.

The fact that they were praising you should have made you take a long look in the mirror. I’m not going to disrespect you by calling you an Uncle Tom or putting up a big picture of Samuel L Jackson from Django Unchained, nor am I writing this to “slam” you, although I am sure many writers will attempt to frame it this way. I respectfully disagree with a position that you have every right to take.

The reason why your latest comments were so surprising for many in the black community is because they appeared to echo Bill O Reilly, Sean Hannity and the rest of Fox News. That’s not what we expect from Sir Charles.

It’s like in Animal Farm where the other animals looked in the window and the pigs were walking upright like the evil humans.

Sir Charles should never appear to be taking on the characteristics of Rush Limbaugh.

This wasn’t the first time either. I did a double take after your statements after the Trayvon Martin verdict. I actually thought I was reading one of those satire articles when you told host Maria Bartiromo on CNBC’s Closing Bell: “That’s probably not a popular opinion among most people. But just looking at the evidence, I agreed with the verdict.”

You went on to say, “I don’t think that guy [George Zimmerman] should have gone to jail for the rest of his life. Because something happened bad that night.”

As a result you will be praised by many who search for a black face to reference who is in agreement with their regularly pushed agendas. It’s the “Rudolph Guliani and cops are always right and the black community is always deserving to be treated as criminals” doctrine.

They’re going to invite you to speak on all of their shows and attend their events. You’ll be awarded admission into their extra “exclusive” golf club memberships. They may even ask you to publicly endorse Ben Carson. You’ll be the “voice of black America” on their shows. It’s like the Don Lemon fast-track to stardom playbook.

You’ll get more commercials, movie roles… hell, we may see you running through the airport jumping over suitcases or starring in the modernized Naked Gun movie with Tucker Carlson as Leslie Neilson. (Just be careful, because all that love and admiration could dissipate in a flash.)

How much confidence can you have in a decision to not indict Darren Wilson when the leading prosecuting attorney was Robert McCulloch, who has never in his entire twenty-three-year career indicted a police officer for killing someone in the line of duty? This was the fifth grand jury McCulloch presented evidence to in a police shooting, and still not a single indictment. And there are other reasons to question this outcome. This PBS Newshour chartshows that sixteen of eighteen grand jury witnesses testified that Michael Brown had his hands up when he was fatally shot.

As far as the police are concerned, we all (black, white, Hispanic, Asian, all communities) want the same thing: we want good, honest, committed police officers who are actually serving and protecting everyone. We’re not indicting all police officers, but we do want criminal police officers removed. To view the police completely as “good” is just as dangerous as viewing them completely as “evil.” Both are very far from accurate.

But there is a reason people are hostile. There have been fourteen black teens killed by police since Mike Brown. Twelve-year-old Tamir Rice killed in Cleveland, 14-year-old Cameron Tillman in Louisiana, VonDerrit Myers Jr. not far from where Mike Brown was killed, 18-year-old Jeffrey Holden in Kansas City.

In addition, a never-ending reel of police brutality and beatings is constantly shown on social media. And, in most cases, fails to result in any type of punishment for the cop. They typically are put on paid administrative leave (as was Darren Wilson for over 100 days), which is in essence a paid vacation, and yet you have the nerve to praise the police as a whole for their work in the black community ?

And while we don’t condone breaking the law, burning or looting, let me remind you of a quote from Dr. King, who said, “A riot is the voice of the unheard.”

You have to take into account the everyday living and existing in a state of inequality that has led to the riots. The outrage and disgust of feeling helpless. A community who sees no justice. You’re focused on the reaction and not the cause of the reaction.

Dr. King also said, “Our greatest stumbling block toward freedom is not the Ku Klux Klan, it’s the white moderate who are more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice.”

Why do you think President Obama asked for $263 million to provide police departments with body cameras? Because sometimes the “scumbags” are in fact the ones with the badge and the ones deserving praise are the ones in the black communities who survive them.

So, as a federal investigation by the Justice Department into the shooting death of Michael Brown continues, in addition to an investigation into allegations of unconstitutional policing patterns and practices by the Ferguson Police Department; and with the inconsistent officer testimony to the grand jury and the continuing mistrust between the black community and the police in mind, you can understand why your statements disappointed, angered, sickened and disgusted many in the black community. Because it felt like betrayal.

You weren’t afraid to ask that all-important question, a question that confronts people who look like Michael Brown, Eric Garner and myself: “Who’s afraid a large black man?” Tragically, it now seems like the answer might be you.

Sincerely,

Etan Thomas

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