NBA legend Charles Barkley is revered in the NBA. The Philadelphia 76ers honored him for his efforts with a statue outside their training arena. During his playing career, Barkley has won almost every individual accolade. He even won the NBA MVP race against a prime Michael Jordan in 1993. However, he could not manage to win a title in his career and is still trolled for it. Throughout his career, he received a lot of criticism about his weight gain and his mindset.
Legendary head coach Phil Jackson once criticized Barkley’s discipline and stated it is hard to win with a player like him. Even though Jackson thought he was unstoppable, he felt the Philadelphia 76ers legend had no discipline.
Charles Barkley hours before the game
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Charles Barkley is an avid golfer. When he was close friends with NBA legend Michael Jordan, the two spent a lot of time together on the golf course. The 1993 NBA MVP has also played in many celebrity golf tournaments over the years. After retiring from the NBA in 2000, he continued playing golf and competing in tournaments. Before one such celebrity tournament, there was an interesting incident.
In 2005, Barkley was competing in the American Century Championship Golf Tournament for celebrities. According to reports from Imago, Barkley started his own late-night party spending over $2K for Corona beer and tequila for people at the casino.
DIVE DEEPER
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
He reportedly was drinking well after 2:30 AM, hours before playing at the tournament. It begs the question, would Barkley have stopped drinking earlier if it was Budweiser beer because of his experience in 1992?
Barkley’s drinking experience with Larry Bird
Charles Barkley was one of the funniest athletes during his playing career. He once revealed a hilarious drinking story about NBA legend Larry Bird. When Barkley and Bird were part of the 1992 Dream Team, the two were having a night off with some beer. However, Barkley could not keep up with the Boston Celtics legend. He stated Bird drinks Budweiser beer, and it is the strongest beer in the world. However, it is not the strongest in the world. Barkley added his head hurt for two days after drinking with Bird.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
WATCH THIS STORY – 10 times Chuck roasted NBA stars.
After his retirement, Barkley speaks his mind as a basketball analyst. However, he is still funny and the fans love his antics with fellow NBA legends Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson on the show.
