LeBron James (Photo : Getty Images/Patrick Smith)
The NBA beef between Charles Barkley and LeBron James took a sharp turn as the King threw personal attacks on the TNT commentator.
"He's a hater," James told ESPN courtesy of Dave McMenamin. "What makes what he says credible? Because he's on TV?"
"I'm not going to let him disrespect my legacy like that," James continued. "I'm not the one who threw somebody through a window. I never spit on a kid. I never had unpaid debt in Las Vegas. I never said, 'I'm not a role model.' I never showed up to All-Star Weekend on Sunday because I was in Vegas all weekend partying.
All I've done for my entire career is represent the NBA the right way. Fourteen years, never got in trouble. Respected the game. Print that."
Dwyane Wade also showed his support for his "banana boat" buddy with his comments (h/t CBS).
"Thank God he finally said something," Wade said. "LeBron, a lot of guys take a lot of shots at him -- for whatever reason. He just has kept his mouth closed and continued to focused on what he needs to. But it's about time he said something man. Guys ride him, especially ex-players."
"When you have a history, when you can go and Google your history, you better be a little careful with what you say. Sometimes, when guys get a microphone in front of their face, they just talk and talk and forget about their history. We all make that mistake, but especially that guy on TV. He acting like he just walks on water. And I like the fact that LeBron called him out and told him about himself a little bit. Humble yourself."
Barkley owned up to the accusations hurled against him and stood by his critique. He's not confronting the issues raised by what he accurately described as a "Google Search History"
LeBron continued to challenge Barkley and apparently is not ready to just brush this off. "And if this makes him want to talk to me, the schedule's out there," James said. "He knows every road arena I'll be in. Don't just come up to me at All-Star and shake my hand and smile."
Will this change Barkley, or curb his criticism of players? Probably not. Barkley is who he is and his life and mistakes are all an open book. He has never been one to cower or deny.
James is also who he is. Despite his declaration of "taking the high road" he has always been thin-skinned with regards to criticism. This beef is unlikely to end soon and there will likely be new chapters added.
