If anyone knows what a lazy prima donna looks and acts like, it's Charles Barkley. That's because the NBA Hall of Famer was one himself during his playing days, according to former teammates and former NBA stand-outs like Jason Williams, who didn't want to play with him. Barkley even admitted to a lethargic approach to training before actual games.
Chuck was a guest on SiriusXM Bleacher Report Radio podcast Tuesday to do what he does best: remain outspoken about the NBA. This includes him dissecting the differences between the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Dream Teams that he played on, praising Michael Jordan for breaking his silence on American race relations, and responding to Jason William's recently dubbing him a "loser" during his playing days.
Barkley fondly recalled the '92 'Dream Team' and slammed the '96 squad in the same breath. "For the whole couple months, [the 1992 team] got along like it was the greatest thing in the world. Nobody had an ego," he said. "In '96, guys started complaining about playing time—guys started [saying] 'well I should be starting.' And I'm like 'wait a minute, y'all [aren't] even that good compared to the team I used to be on.'"
He didn't mention names, although he did state that several members of the '96 team, which won the gold medal in Atlanta that Olympiad, didn't even show up for practice out of disgust for their playing time. "It was not a lot of fun hearing guys bitch and complain all the time about who should be starting," Barkley said "...In '96, it was a nightmare. Guys complained about playing time and starting the whole time. I hated it."
You can listen to the podcast with his 'Dream Team' commentary here.
When he spoke about the current state of U.S. race relations and NBA stars taking a stand, Barkley repeated his "I am not a role model" sentiment from his famous 1993 Nike commercial in relation to the recent ESPY Awards opening speech by Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Paul. Barkley quipped:
"It's easy to get on TV and say you're an activist, but what have you actually done to help the black community? I had no problem with [the ESPYs opening], but we have to stop expecting these black players to raise our families."
He even said in this part of the podcast, "[We] as black people gotta do a better job of policing ourselves." He added about police murdering black citizens:
"We're asking cops to come into volatile situations and solve our problems, it's terrifying. Better training is needed. [We] can't let the police judge themselves; they'll never say an accidental shooting was a murder. [We] need an independent panel."
Lastly, in regards to Jason Williams, Charles scoffed at the former NBA player's diss, "Now I have to respond to Jason Williams? ...I'm never gonna get to the point where I have to respond to Jason Williams."
You can listen to Charles' response to Jason Williams here.
