OT: Charles Oakley vs Charles Barkley

[navysully]

Anyone see this article yet? What are your thoughts? I am biased because I was 10 in 1993 when we went to the finals. Barkley was my childhood hero and he can do no wrong in my eyes

I for one thought Barkley worked pretty damn hard for us. I think we lost the finals because of John Paxton, who I would punch in the face to this day if I ever met him... haha.

http://network.yardbarker.com/nba/artic ... le/3833970
Charles Oakley was a very fun player to watch. Same with Charles Barkley. But it looks like both retirees have some beef spurring up, thanks to Oakley.
Here is what he had to say:
“I have nothing against Isiah but he made a lot of comments about the Knicks in the old days. He’s a great player, just like (Charles) Barkley’s a great player, but he’s an a–hole. My thing is, when Barkley played basketball, he didn’t practice, he wasn’t a leader, he wasn’t this or that, he just had natural talent so he got chosen to the Dream Team, All Star team because he had the talent and he was the franchise player on the team. Him criticizing all those other guys, he did the same thing when he was young. As soon as they do something wrong, he criticizes them, that’s wrong. He wasn’t real to the game. Let the guys speak out who are real to the game. He talks like a player and I will give him that, but for him to comment about this and being a professional, he wasn’t all that.”
“I probably should’ve listened to Michael (Jordan) a year ago when he said that Charles will never win a championship because he doesn’t show any dedication. I was very shocked to see what type of player he was by spending half a season with him. I’m a guy that’s dedicated to winning, and I put out a lot of effort on the court. I expect that from my teammates, especially from a guy of his caliber. You know he’s not willing to go the distance. There’s no reason for me to put my last three or four years at risk of never winning.
“Charles is definitely one of the guys that needs to show more leadership for this ballclub to be successful, and he don’t show that to me. … He feels that if he gets 10 rebounds and double-figure points, he’s done a good job. But that’s not what the game’s about. It’s about defending, being professional and coming to work every day.”
I wonder what Barkley is going to say after this.

[thamadkant]

A bit wrong...

Barkley had heart... his talent was there, but you dont win MVP and carry your team to Finals without heart, hard work and some sort of leadership skills...

Charles Oakley is trying to get a job a s media person.... me thinks..

I do agree, that Barkley didnt have the same hunger or passion as Jordan... but who does?

[YFZblu]

I wonder what Barkley is going to say after this.

I doubt Barkley responds at all. This definitely isn't the first time someone has spoken ill of the way he conducted himself professionally while he was in the NBA. I'm confused though; most of your quotes aren't quotes from Charles Oakley, those are comments Scottie Pippen made when Barkley criticized Pippen for wanting to leave the Rockets in 1999. So either Charles Oakley was quoting Scottie Pippen directly, or the article you posted didn't organize its information well.

Here are some other notable quotes from when Barkley and Pippen were feuding at that time:


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-"I wouldn't give Charles Barkley an apology at gunpoint," Pippen said, never raising his voice. "He can never expect an apology from me. ... If anything, he owes me an apology for coming to play with his fat butt."

-"He's a very selfish guy," Pippen said of Barkley. "He doesn't show the desire to want to win. That's my reason for wanting to get away from playing with him anymore because he just doesn't show the dedication.

-"I probably should've listened to Michael (Jordan) a year ago when he said that Charles will never win a championship because he doesn't show any dedication."

-"I was very shocked to see what type of player he was by spending half a season with him," he said of Barkley. "I'm a guy that's dedicated to winning, and I put out a lot of effort on the court. I expect that from my teammates, especially from a guy of his caliber.

-"You know he's not willing to go the distance. There's no reason for me to put my last three or four years at risk of never winning.

http://assets.espn.go.com/nba/news/1999/0929/85794.html

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[Calvin Klein]

We lost the Finals because of Jordan mostly he averaged like a hundred **** points.

We lost every game at home too.