Once upon a time, Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley—two of the biggest NBA stars of their generation—were friends and rivals. Now, the pair is going on 10 years without speaking to each other.
That’s the situation Barkley described Tuesday in an interview with Bleacher Report‘s Taylor Rooks, where he dove into what caused the split between the two Hall of Famers. As Barkley recalls, the trouble began when he was publicly critical of Jordan’s decision-making as the owner and lead executive of the Hornets.
“It’s a really unfortunate situation for me and him. But 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,” Barkley said. “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.’”
Barkley said that after he made those comments, Jordan took offense—”It wasn’t a pleasant conversation”—and the two haven’t spoken since.
Though the exchange was heated, Barkley said that he didn’t think the disagreement would become as drawn out as it has been, and that the two would eventually smooth things over.
“I thought it would blow over, to be honest with you,” Barkley said. “And he’s stubborn—and I’m stubborn—and that’s it.”
Barkley said that he and Jordan have crossed paths in the years since, but never interacted with one another. If given the chance, he said that he would love to bury that hatchet between them and work toward being friends again.
“I probably would say, ‘Hey, you know, what I said, I believed. I’m sorry you took offense to it, and let’s get past this b------- and go back to playing golf and having fun.’”
