LeBron explodes on Charles Barkley
AFTER years of being fodder for Charles Barkley to comment on in his role as an analyst on TNT's “Inside the NBA,” LeBron James has heard enough.
“He's a hater,” James told ESPN of Barkley following the Cleveland Cavaliers' 104-97 loss to the Dallas Mavericks last Monday. “What makes what he says credible? Because he's on TV?”
James had been stewing the past couple of days after Barkley took James to task for the four-time MVP calling out the Cavs for needing to fortify the roster with another playmaker to have a realistic shot at a repeat title.
“Inappropriate. Whiny. All of the above,” Barkley said of James last week. “The Cleveland Cavaliers, they have given him everything he wanted. They have the highest payroll in NBA history. He wanted JR Smith last summer, they paid him. He wanted (Iman) Shumpert last summer. They brought in Kyle Korver. He's the best player in the world. Does he want all of the good players? He don't want to compete? He is an amazing player. They're the defending champs.”
Barkley has consistently needled James, telling HBO's Bill Simmons over the summer that James would “never” ascend to top-five status in NBA history over Michael Jordan, Oscar Robertson, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain, and going back all the way to 2010 and James' “The Decision” television special, when Barkley told ESPN Radio 103,3 FM in Dallas/Fort Worth that it was a “punk move” for James to leave the Cavs to take up with the Miami Heat.
James initially took the high road when asked about Barkley's recent comments, saying they were “good for the ratings”, while defending his competitive spirit.
But after ESPN followed up with a story asking Tristan Thompson for his thoughts on Barkley's comments, James chose to speak out again in ardent fashion.
“I'm not going to let him disrespect my legacy like that,” James told ESPN. “I'm not the one who threw somebody through a window. I never spit on a kid. I never had unpaid debt in Las Vegas. I never said, ‘I'm not a role model.' I never showed up to All-Star Weekend on Sunday because I was in Vegas all weekend partying.
“All I've done for my entire career is represent the NBA the right way. Fourteen years, never got in trouble. Respected the game. Print that.”
James then issued a challenge - of MARIA Sharapova\s fight back from the 15-month ban slapped on her has taken quite a literal form with the tennis star taking to boxing, among other things, to keep her occupied and motivated while she serves out the ban she received after failing a drug test during the 2016 Australian Open.
The Russian refuses to feel sorry for herself, occupying her time by studying at Harvard, writing a book and even learning how to box.
She also said that boxing was great as she could imagine some certain people she wanted to hit.
Boxing really seems to have perked her up, with the former world number one and five-time Grand Slam campion telling a Russian chat show that “I stick by what I said. He was all whiny and everything last week, so I’m good, man. Listen, If I’m going to be straightforward like I always try to be, I know guys are going to try to come back at me sometimes, so I’m good.
“He got personal, but like I said, I’m never going to get personal on an NBA player. All my criticism and critiques are always just about basketball, and I’m going to keep doing what I do.
“Clearly, he had done his homework on some screw-ups I’ve had in my life … Clearly, he Googled me and found out some things, because I think he was young when I was play- sorts.
“And if this makes him want to talk to me, the schedule's out there,” James said. “He knows every road arena I'll be in. Don't just come up to me at AllStar and shake my hand and smile.”
James also spoke up about the perception he and his inner circle face as young, successful black businessmen,