Charles Barkley is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players and personalities in NBA history. Throughout his illustrious career, he has achieved numerous accolades including being named an NBA MVP, 11-time All Star, Hall of Fame inductee, and sports analyst. His larger than life personality on and off the court have made him a fan favorite for decades – from his playing days to now with Inside The NBA on TNT.
Barkley spent 16 seasons playing in the NBA for three different teams. He wasn’t as tall as most power forwards, but he made up for it with his aggressiveness and strength and became one of the best rebounders in the league. He knew how to use his abilities in order to be versatile. Barkley was able to successfully defend, score, and make plays.
Charles Barkley, a perennial All-Star and 1993 League MVP, earned the nicknames “Sir Charles” and “The Round Mound of Rebound” due to his physical playing style. He was named to the All-NBA team eleven times and contributed greatly to two gold medal wins for the United States Olympic Basketball teams in 1992 and 1996 by leading both teams in scoring and helping them remain undefeated at 16–0.
Charles Barkley – Early Life
Charles Wade Barkley was born on the 20th of February, in 1963, Leeds, Alabama, at a segregated and all-white town hospital. He was one of the first black students to attend his elementary school. Barkley’s father abandoned the family when he was still a kid, leaving him, his younger brother Darryl, and their mother. His mother remarried and had another child named John Glenn. Unfortunately, when Charles was 11, his stepfather was killed in an accident.
Charles Barkley – High School
Barkley attended Leeds High School and at first wasn’t a memorable player. He failed to make the varsity team but when he grew around 6 inches (15cm) during the summer, he became one of the better players in Alabama. As a senior, he made the varsity team. He had an extraordinary season, averaging 19.1 points and a remarkable 17.9 rebounds per game that enabled his team to achieve an impressive 26–3 record on the way to the state semi-finals. He also earned a scholarship to Auburn University during his senior year.
Charley Barkley – College
Although Barkley struggled to control his weight during his college years, he managed to lead the SEC in rebounding each year. He was a crowd-pleaser, often showing off his dunking and blocking skills. He could manage to grab a defensive rebound, dribble the ball across the court alone, and finish with a dunk. Because of his size and abilities, he gained the nickname “The Round Mound of Rebound” and the “Crisco Kid”.
He was honored to join Auburn’s All-Century Team and still holds the record for the highest career field goal percentage in school history at an impressive 62.6%. Throughout his three years of college basketball, Barkley averaged 14.1 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.7 blocks per game – a remarkable feat!He was among the 74 college players invited to the spring tryouts for the 1984 U.S. Olympic team coached by Bob Knight.
Charles Barkley – Philadelphia 76ers
Barkley left Auburn early to make himself eligible for the 1984 NBA draft, where he was selected fifth by the Philadelphia 76ers, just two slots after the Chicago Bulls chose Michael Jordan. Charles Barkley played with the Sixers from 1984 up until 1992. During his rookie season, he joined great players like Julius Erving and Moses Malone, who led the team to the NBA championship in 1983.
With the help of Malone, Barkley was able to get in shape and learned how to properly prepare himself for games. Barkley said that Moses Malone had the biggest influence on his career and admitted to often calling him “Dad.” During his first regular season with the 76ers, he averaged 14.0 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Barkley also earned a berth on the All-Rookie Team.
During the second year, he improved his game and abilities under the wing of Malone and was able to become the leading rebounder of the team and number two scorer. He was one of the main forces of the 76ers and led the team to the playoffs. The team lost despite their efforts in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
After the 1986–87 season saw Malone traded to the Washington Bullets, Barkley began taking on a leadership role within the team. That season, He achieved an average of 23.0 points on .594 shooting, resulting in his selection for the NBA All-Star game and a second consecutive All-NBA Second Team award.
The next season, Julius Erving announced his retirement and Barkley became the franchise player for the 76ers. Barkley had a remarkable season, averaging 28.3 points with a .587 shooting percentage and 11.9 rebounds per game. He was honored to be selected for his second All-Star Game, and even more thrilled when he was named to the All-NBA First Team for the first time ever. Additionally, his celebrity status as the Philadelphia 76ers’ franchise player earned him a spot on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
During the 1989–90 season, Barkley earned a slew of accolades, including being named Player of the Year by The Sporting News and Basketball Weekly, as well as making the All-NBA First Team for the third consecutive year and earning his fourth All-Star selection. He garnered more first-place votes, but still ended up in second place behind Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers in MVP voting. He averaged 25.2 points and 11.5 rebounds per game with career-high .600 shooting. His efforts helped the Philadelphia 76ers win 53 regular-season games, but they were ultimately defeated by the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
In the 1991-92 season, Charles Barkley chose to honor Magic Johnson by wearing his number 32 jersey, a number that had been retired by the 76ers in honor of Billy Cunningham. With Cunningham’s approval, the number was unretired so that Barkley could wear it.
In his last season with the Philadelphia 76ers, Barkley averaged 23.1 points per game on an impressive .552 shooting, as well as 11.1 rebounds per game. He earned his sixth consecutive All-Star selection and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, making it seven times that he had made either the first or second team. Barkley experienced great success during his time with the 76ers, becoming fourth in total points scored (14,184), third highest in scoring average (23.3 ppg), third most rebounds (7,079) secured, eighth greatest number of assists (2,276) made and second best field goal percentage (.576).
Charles Barkley – Phoenix Suns
Barkley’s trade to the Los Angeles Lakers was initially finalized before the end of the season, but the Philadelphia 76ers canceled their agreement a few hours later. On July 17th, 1992, the Phoenix Suns acquired Charles Barkley in a trade for Jeff Hornacek, Tim Perry and Andrew Lang.Charles Barkley – Phoenix Suns
The 1992-93 trade to Phoenix proved beneficial for both Barkley and the Suns. In his first game, he nearly achieved a triple-double with 37 points, 12 offensive rebounds and 8 assists in a 111-105 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. He achieved career-high averages of 25.6 points on a .520 shooting percentage, 12.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game; these impressive numbers led the Phoenix Suns to an NBA-best record of 62 wins and 20 losses.
Thanks to his achievements, he earned the league’s Most Valuable Player Award. He was honored to have been chosen for the All-Star Game for seven consecutive seasons, becoming the third player in history to win MVP of the league after being traded and setting several personal records. Furthermore, he guided Phoenix to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1976.
Due to debilitating back pain, Barkley speculated that the 1993–94 season would be his last with the Phoenix Suns. Despite enduring some of the worst injury problems in his NBA career, he still managed to score 21.6 points per game while shooting a .495 average and averaging 11.2 rebounds, earning selection for an eighth consecutive All-Star Game (which he ultimately didn’t play due to a torn right quadriceps tendon). His performance earned him a spot on the All-NBA Second Team.
Barkley returned for his eleventh season and continued to battle injuries. Despite the setbacks, he managed to fight through it, performing better during the second half of the campaign and earning a ninth consecutive All-Star Game selection.
Charles Barkley’s 1995–96 season with the Phoenix Suns marked his final year with the team. He was voted Western Conference All-Star starter and achieved a career high free throw shooting percentage of .777. On November 22, he posted his 18th triple-double, making him only the tenth player in NBA history to reach 20,000 points and 10,000 rebounds in their career. Additionally, Barkley led the Suns in scoring (23.3 ppg), rebounds (11.6 rpg) and steals (.500 FG%).
Charles Barkley – Houston Rockets
In the 1996-97 NBA season, Barkley’s last shot at a championship title was when he was traded to the Houston Rockets. He then joined an experienced squad with two of basketball’s 50 Greatest Players: Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. Unfortunately, before the season began he was suspended for one game and fined $5,000 for a fight during a preseason game on October 25th against Charles Oakley that started after Oakley committed a flagrant foul on Barkley.
He battled injuries throughout the season, playing in only 53 games. He was forced to miss 14 games due to a laceration and bruise on his left pelvis, 11 from a sprained right ankle, and an additional 4 for suspensions.
Barkley finished as the team’s second-leading scorer, averaging 19.2 points on a shooting percentage of .484; this was his lowest scoring average since his rookie year. Furthermore, taking most shots for the team, Barkley prioritized rebounding and averaged 13.5 per game – the second highest in his career.
In 1997-98, injuries continued to be a problem for Barkley; however, he still managed to become the second player in NBA history (after Wilt Chamberlain) to rack up 23,000 points, 12,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists throughout his career.
Barkley quickly made an impact on the Rockets, leading them to reach the conference finals in the 1996-97 season. Despite his best efforts, he was unable to bring home a championship title during his time in Houston and retired in 2000.
Charles Barkley – Olympic Career
Barkley was a crucial part of the “Dream Team” that won two gold medals for the United States men’s basketball team at the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games, making history in the process. It was a groundbreaking moment as international rules were amended to allow NBA players to participate in the Olympics for the first time. Barkley and his teammates went undefeated, going 6-0 in qualifying matches and 8-0 against their opponents during both tournaments.
At the 1992 Olympics, Barkley set a U.S. Men’s Olympic record with 87.5% three-point field goal percentage and averaged 4.1 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game. During the 46–1 run against Angola, he elbowed Herlander Coimbra in the chest and was unapologetic afterwards, insisting he had been hit first. He received an intentional foul for this action with Coimbra making his only point of the game from a free throw awarded as a result of it.
Charles Barkley – Controversies
Spitting Incident
On March 26, 1991, Charles Barkley was suspended from playing and fined $10,000 for his unacceptable behavior of spitting and verbally attacking a fan during the game against the New Jersey Nets. Reports suggest that this fan had been using racial slurs towards Barkley prior to the incident; however, unfortunately it resulted in his spit hitting a young girl. This scandal made headlines across the nation as he was heavily criticized by many. Nevertheless, he eventually offered an apology and went on to develop a strong friendship with the girl’s family; providing them with tickets to future games as well.
“I am not a role model”
Throughout his playing career, Barkley argued that professional athletes should not be expected to serve as role models. He famously asserted, “A million guys can dunk a basketball in jail; should they be role models?” In 1993, this debate reached national proportions when he was featured in the iconic Nike commercial “I am not a role model.” Dan Quayle, the former Vice President of the United States, characterized Barkley’s message as one of “family values,” imploring parents and teachers to take on more responsibility for raising their children rather than relying on famous athletes.
Charles Barkeley – NBA Legacy
Barkley is a basketball legend, having been inducted twice into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 for his individual career and 2010 as part of the iconic “Dream Team”. His accomplishments on and off the court have made him an inspiration to aspiring athletes everywhere.Barkley was extremely well-liked by fans and media alike, earning himself a spot on the NBA’s All-Interview Team for his last 13 seasons in the league.
He often courted controversy both on and off the court with his behavior, but since Charles Barkley retired from playing he has achieved considerable success as an NBA analyst for TNT’s Inside the NBA alongside Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson; winning four Sports Emmy Awards in recognition of his work. Barkley also regularly authors books and has expressed an interest in politics.
Charles Barkley – Personal Life
Charles Barkley and Maureen Blumhardt first crossed paths in a City Avenue Restaurant sometime during the 1980s. Maureen was working as a part-time model in Bucks County, Pennsylvania and also served as a legal aide for a non-profit organization. After connecting, they eventually tied the knot in 1989 and welcomed their daughter Christiana into the world that same year. The couple has remained happily married ever since!
Charles Barkley – Net worth
Charles Barkley’s net worth as of January 2023 is estimated to be a whopping $50 Million. This number has grown significantly since his career in professional basketball and subsequent television appearances. Barkley has continued to expand his brand, investing in many different ventures which undoubtedly have contributed to his wealth. His vast success has certainly been well earned, and it looks set to continue into the future.
Who did Charles Barkley play for in high school?
He attended and played for Leeds High School. As a junior, he was not considered a good player due to his weight and insufficient height – 6′6″ or 198cm.
Why was Charles Barkley so good?
Charles Barkley certainly made history with his unique talent as a player. Standing at 6’6″, he played power forward better than anyone in the NBA, often overpowering players that were half a foot taller. His stats and records prove it – he was truly an anomaly of basketball greatness. He also set an example for others to follow, demonstrating that size doesn’t always matter when playing this sport.
How many championships did Charles Barkley win?
Charles Barkley, despite an illustrious NBA career and being considered one of the greatest power forwards in the history of the league, never won an NBA championship. His talent and efforts earned him numerous individual accolades, but a championship ring eluded him throughout his career.
