Charles Barkley: “I think the NBA should consider contracting”
February 10, 2010 – 10:00 am by timgunterCharles Barkley is not afraid to say what is on his mind. If you want a straight forward answer go to Barkley and he will give it to you. You either love him or hate him and there is no in between. TNT loves him as they have locked him up for quite some time so that he can give his great opinions and continue to get made fun of by Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith. In my opinion, there is no other broadcast team that I would rather watch than that of NBA on TNT. With the NBA season at its halfway point, there has been much talk recently in the NBA of possible contraction. Jerry West has said the league should consider eliminating a couple of teams as the thin talent level has made for substandard quality of play. Barkley agrees with that and understands basketball fans not wanting to pay a lot of money to watch bad basketball.
Charles Barkley joined WIP in Philadelphia with Howard Eskin to talk about why the NBA Dunk Contest has become distasteful to the stars of the NBA, when he thinks Tiger is going to play again, and about Jerry West suggesting NBA contraction.
On the media not making a big deal out of Peyton Manning leaving the field without shaking hands with Drew Brees when they jumped on LeBron for the same thing:
“You know Howard (Eskin) I one hundred percent agree with you. First of all I got mad at EPSN because should LeBron should have did it? No. They were talking about it a week later. They are now just now starting to talk about Peyton walking off the field. Personally I don’t think they should have to shake these guys’ hands, but I don’t believe in double standards. I felt like they were crucifying LeBron last year and Peyton is getting a pass. Like I said I don’t care either way because I do think it is the team who won the championship. It is their time… Players don’t worry about crap like that.”
Why the NBA Dunk Contest has become distasteful to the stars of the NBA:
“Well, first of all I think we have the best All-Star format by far because it’s a great weekend. The Pro Bowl, they need to burn that thing up. It’s a joke. I mean it is like the twelfth-best guys or something. It is so stupid what they did this year because clearly two of the better teams are going to go to the Super Bowl so those guys are going to be out every year. So the notion they have about having it the week before you are going to miss five to ten players a year because your better teams are going to be in the Super Bowl so that is just a stupid idea. Hockey it is just a scoring fest because there is no checking. Baseball is just silly because they are going to decide who is going to host the World Series. Every other sport in the world the team with the best record, that’s why you play the regular season, gets home field. To have the All-Star game be anything but an exhibition is ridiculous. I am excited this year Howard because we are going to have 100,000 people. Some people are complaining that is a lot of people. I think that is so cool to have an event that will have 100,000 people. If that is not great exposure…that is why I don’t care who wins the All-Star game. It is just an exhibition but to have 100,000 people is going to be cool.”
On the players that don’t want to participate in the Slam Dunk contest:
“I think these guys make so much money now they never think about just for the good of the game. I wish LeBron had did it because it just would have been good for the game. You have got a guy that is probably making fifty, sixty, seventy million dollars who is kind of established and not worried about anything like that to be honest with you. Remember? Think about. Dominique Wilkins, Michael Jordan and all of these guys they been it at least two or three times in that thing. Those guys in my day, we was making money but not like they are making today. I don’t think these guys think about. You know what? Let me just get into the Slam Dunk competition. It will be good for the game and that is it.”
On Jerry West suggesting NBA contraction:
“I never thought about that but I feel bad for these fans and some of that is probably what they are putting out there today and I think the NBA should consider contracting because you can’t charge people an exorbitant amount of money to watch bad basketball. It is not fair to the fans and it is not fair to the game.”
Whether he thinks the sex clinic will help Tiger:
“I don’t know how that works. I think that is a serious legitimate question Howard. I don’t know how that works. My brother had alcohol and drug problems. He couldn’t do drugs clearly. I don’t know how this sex rehab thing works to be honest with you.”
On the CNN special about sex rehab:
“The one thing that they both agreed upon that you have to go like a year without sex apparently. (Other Host Ike Reese: That is no problem for Howard.) That includes by yourself.”
Howard Eskin:
“I am a switch hitter. I can go left hand or right hand. What the heck!”
Charles responds:
“I know you are used to choking that chicken.”
When he thinks Tiger is going to play again:
“You know what Howard? I have no idea. Once he gets out of the thing where you go to rehab you are not allowed to call people and things like that. I have not talked to him and I have got to tell you that I have no idea if he is going to do anything to be honest with you.”
On Tiger returning just in time for the Master’s:
“Well I thought about that. It’s clear that the Majors record is the thing that he always wanted to accomplish, but I do think that he would take some heat to come back just to play the Majors to be honest with you. No question. See Howard you have a good point. Every now and then you come up with one.”
Charles Barkley on WIP in Philly with Howard Eskin
Tags: Charles Barkley speaks the truth, former NBA All-Star, NBA contraction, thoughts on Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, thoughts on Tiger Woods, Tiger playing in the Master's
