Jan 25, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the first half against the Sacramento Kings at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
LeBron James went where the Warriors and so many others must have dreamed of going. He slayed Charles Barkley.
James spoke with ESPN on Monday night after a stunning loss to the Mavericks. And he was not happy that Barkley had questioned his leadership.
“He’s a hater,” James said. “What makes what he says credible? Because he’s on TV?”
Barkley’s certainly a hater. But wait, let’s get to the really good stuff (bold is ours):
“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.”
Hoo, boy. You know what? This is exactly how Barkley would have responded to this type of criticism in his playing days.
Speaking of his playing days …
“Go watch the ’93 Finals when John Paxson hit the shot,” James told ESPN. “Barkley and Jordan were laughing and joking with each other during one of the games while somebody’s shooting a free throw. In the Finals. But, oh, nobody were friends back then.”
James ends a fantastic interview — really, read the whole thing — with, “I’m tired of biting my tongue. There’s a new sheriff in town.”
It didn’t take long for NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley to respond to LeBron James’ latest comments in what has been a recent back-and-forth war of words. The long-distance exchange started last week when Barkley said during TNT’s Inside the NBA that James was being “whiny” and “inappropriate” for stating that the Cavaliers need to add a playmaker when they have the highest payroll in the league.
When asked Tuesday if he felt James crossed the line, Barkley said it was a case of shooting the messenger and that he has no issues with James’ remarks. Barkley states:
“I was laughing, clearly he did some homework… he Googled me and found some things. He was young when I was playing, so I appreciate that, but I’m not upset about it… my criticism was fair and I’m good with that.
Some of the stuff he said about me is correct — doesn’t make the message I said about him incorrect. Some of them are intimidated about LeBron [but] I’m not intimidated at all. I stick by what I said, I’m not going to make this personal… he was all whiny last week. I’m good and I’m straightforward, I’m never going to get personal on an NBA player.”
Migos go sneaker shopping at Flight Club in Los Angeles with Joe La Puma and talk about their least favorite Jordans, getting into fights over sneakers and Adidas’ current run.
Thursday on “The Real,” Keri Hilson gave us all the deets on her upcoming album, “L.I.A.R,” and why she thanks her ex, Serge Ibaka.
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