As the NBA season comes to a close, I'm getting excited for the playoffs. Although it's not the same without Michael Jordan and the Bulls entering the field, I can deal with watching Shaq, Kobe, and ex-Bulls coach Phil Jackson leading the Lakers and Vince Carter, the next Jordan, leading the Toronto Raptors.
Note: Michael Jordan and the Bulls did not appear in last year's playoffs, but last year's abbreviated season wasn't nearly the same as a regular NBA season, so discard it.
Jordan is, however, not the only thing that will be missing from this year's playoffs. There's someone else. He's a close friend of Jordan's. He played just as hard as Michael ever did, if not harder, from a position where he was considerably undersized.
The man played his final game in the NBA Wednesday night, and though he didn't get his typical stats, he made a remarkable comeback after blowing out his knee four months ago. I'm talking about Charles Barkley, of course.
To be honest, I never liked Sir Charles until recently. Maybe it's because whichever team gave the Bulls the toughest challenge was the team I disliked the most.
When the Bulls and the New York Knicks clashed in the Eastern Conference, I hated the Knicks. When the Bulls played Barkley's Phoenix Suns in the Finals in 1993, I despised the Suns, particularly Barkley.
Once Barkley's teams stopped being major players for the title, he grew on me. This is why I feel it necessary to pay homage in this column.
Barkley always did things his way and gave as much effort as possible on the court. He's got as many nicknames " Round Mound of Rebound, Sir Charles, Chuckwagon " as he does quotes on any topic. He talks with the kind of blunt honesty that you have to admire.
One of my favorite Barkley quotes came in response to Tonya Harding, who once called herself "the Barkley of figure skating." Barkley retorted with this: "My initial response was to sue her for defamation of character, but then I realized that I had no character." This quote reveals so much about Barkley. He's very self-effacing. He provides laughter. He's always willing to give his opinion on anything.
Barkley has three sides to him, his quotes, his play on the court, and his acts off the court. Sir Charles never was the kind of role model off the court that he was on it. A couple years ago, he got into an argument with a man in a bar and ended up throwing him through a window.
Not exactly a role model type act, but Barkley should be remembered for what he did on the court. The career numbers don't lie: 23,757 points, 12,546 rebounds, 11 All-Star game appearances, two Olympic gold medals, 20 triple-doubles, 1992-1993 season MVP, five-time First Team All-NBA, five-time Second Team All-NBA, one-time Third Team All-NBA, and one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players of All Time.
What makes Barkley's numbers even more significant is his size relative to the position he played. He's listed as 6'6" in height, but admittedly much closer to 6'4". Playing power forward, Barkley was almost always dwarfed in terms of height. However, he was never dwarfed in effort. Although he never won a championship, Barkley always gave it his all.
I'll miss Barkley's "words of wisdom," but more than that, I'll miss his efforts on the court. Sir Charles never believed that athletes should be role models, but his play should stand for all time as an example of the effort it takes to play basketball or any other game.
