Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan Turn 60: Why Are the NBA Legends Feuding With Each Other?

Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan Turn 60: Why Are the NBA Legends Feuding With Each Other?

Joel Reyes
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:26 PM
  • Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan both celebrated their 60th birthdays recently
  • The two basketball legends have been embroiled in a feud for over a decade now
  • The argument stems from Barkley’s criticism of how Jordan runs his NBA team

It was Charles Barkley’s turn to hit the big six-oh with the Hall of Famer celebrating his 60th birthday on Monday, February 20.

Barkley hit that milestone just three days after Michael Jordan celebrated his sixth decade of life.

Unfortunately, the two Dream Team members were not together to celebrate their birthdays together as they continued their decade-long beef with each other.

Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan, NBA
Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan still do not talk. Images: Elsa/ Lisa O'Connor.
Source: Getty Images

Jordan and Barkley having a rift for that long is saddening to say the least, given that the two stars were the closest of friends at one point in their lives.

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They were golf buddies in the past, but that is no longer the case now. In fact, they have not spoken to each other for over ten years now after Barkley publicly criticized Jordan on how he was running the Charlotte Bobcats (now the Hornets).

Smith offers take on feud

Former Houston Rockets star and now TNT analyst, Kenny Smith offered his take on the NBA’s greatest feud, saying he thinks it’s time for one of them to apologize, per Sports Illustrated.

TMZ met the former North Carolina star on two separate occasions to discuss the issue. Smith jokingly said during the first conversation that Chuck should apologize, adding that 'he is always in the wrong anyway'.

Smith then took the question more seriously in a separate interview, telling TMZ:

“I do think Charles was wrong. Mike is doing a great job.”

Barkley explains his side

Barkley offered some insight into his feud with Jordan recently, telling Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks in an interview that it was a really unfortunate situation for him and for MJ.

“I’m going to do my job, first and foremost. Because I can’t criticize other coaches and general managers and give him a pass because he’s my best friend. I just can’t do that. What I said was, ‘Michael’s got to surround himself with better people. And I worry about him being successful'.”

Both stars are prideful, so it is not a complete surprise to see none of them budging in this fight.

Let’s hope these two basketball legends can sort this out soon and rekindle their friendship.

Jordan's 60-point games

Sports Brief recently reported on the 60-point games of Michael Jordan. 'His Airness' pulled off the feat five times in his storied career, one of which came in the playoffs.

He dropped 63 points against the Boston Celtics in the 1986 NBA Playoffs, shooting 22 of 41 from the floor and 19 of 21 from the free-throw line.

The Bulls still ended up losing that contest by 135 points to 131.

Authors
Joel Reyes photo
Joel Reyes
Joel Reyes is a sports editor at Sportsbrief.com with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of the Philippines. He has eight years of work experience in sports writing.
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