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American Morning
Charles Barkley Sounds Off in Broadcast Booth
Aired May 22, 2001 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NANCY NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here's a little time out and entertainment, call it that. For 16 seasons, Charles Barkley was a double threat, one of the NBA's 50 all-time great players on the court and yes, one of the most quotable off of it. Now, he's taken his opinions, of which he has plenty, to the broadcast booth while contemplating a comeback with Michael Jordan next year.
CNN/"Sports Illustrated"'s Laura Okmin spent a day with him at his new job at TNT, and just so we're clear, the views expressed in this report are solely those of Sir Charles, particularly at the end there. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHARLES BARKLEY, TNT COMMENTATOR: I'm not sure, you know -- religion can help them guys.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 324 down to 319.
BARKLEY: I kill you two to win a championship.
That's the stupid think I have ever heard.
LAURA OKMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What's the year been like for you, just working here and making the switch to TV?
BARKLEY: It's just as much fun as I thought it would be. It just takes -- a lot of time and effort goes into doing this, not for us but all the people who work here.
You got a new pin anywhere?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
BARKLEY: Where.
Man, shut up, take two Advil. You got your but kicked pretty good.
I thought the Raptors should have just took a real hard foul on Allen Iverson, because he was going for numbers, trying to break my record. That's why they should have took him out.
OKMIN: Does it make it understandable to the guys that you're so openly critical of -- when you sit behind the desk and you say that Vince Carter is playing like a girl or when you say Rasheed Wallace is a knucklehead, do the guys...
BARKLEY: Well, I don't criticize guys unless they deserve to be criticized. I don't have animosity toward any players. I want the players to do well, but there's a time when I have to criticize them. I'm not going to get in here and say positive things about them all the time when they don't deserve it.
OKMIN: And you never feel like you have to hold back, especially considering you are going to be playing against them next season?
BARKLEY: I'm not worried about it. They need to worry about me. You don't come back to embarrass yourself. I'm happy with my legacy. I'm happy with myself. I like my new job, but if Michael Jordan calls you and says he's considering coming back, you have to think about it.
OKMIN: Has it surprised you how much just the rumor of it in the beginning, how it's taken this kind of a life on to itself, how much it's the front page, how much news stations led with it?
BARKLEY: Well, the news people are the people that have no life. I mean, I always look at the majority of them as idiots, and that's just how it is. I mean, when Michael -- Michael is, you know, the most powerful, probably other than -- the most marketable sports figure ever, and a lot of people have a lot at stake, and I just think it's great that he would even consider coming back because it takes -- for me, I think it's unbelievable that he would put himself in that situation. That takes great courage.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWMAN: Yes, a little shot of Sir Charles, and more about the comeback. Although Michael Jordan will not confirm that return, Sir Charles maintains that he is going to move in with MJ for about a month or so, so they can train together towards that comeback.
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