Kenny Smith has a message for his “NBA on TNT” co-host Charles Barkley: Say sorry to Michael Jordan already.
“Apologize, Chuck,” Smith said with a smile, via TMZ. “You were in the wrong. He’s always in the wrong! I don’t want to speak to Chuck today, either.”
Former best friends, the last time Barkley and Michael Jordan spoke was about a decade ago, and the Bulls legend apparently told Barkley to go f–k himself.
The pair had been close until Barkley criticized Jordan’s role as an owner of the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) in a 2012 interview. Barkley has said Jordan called him over his comments and after an unpleasant exchange, they never spoke again.
Michael Jordan & Charles Barkley during the 2009 Michael Jordan Celebrity Golf Invitational at Ocean Club Golf Course in Paradise Island, Bahamas. FilmMagic, Inc“He went ballistic, and he called me and the last thing I heard was ‘motherf–ker, f–k you, you’re supposed to be my boy,'” Barkley said of the situation during an appearance on the “All The Smoke” podcast earlier this month. “I said ‘man, I’ve got to do my job.’ We haven’t spoken since that night and that was probably close to 10 years ago.”
In November, Barkley told Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks that he wanted to “get past the bullsh-t” with Jordan, but added that it’s on Jordan to mend their relationship.
Bulls star Michael Jordan and Suns star Charles Barkley before a game at the United Center in Chicago, IL in 1993. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Charles Barkley (r.) and Kenny Smith (l.) on TNT during NBA All-Star Saturday Night on Feb. 19, 2022. NBAE via Getty Images“That’s on his end,” Barkley said. “He was my best friend at the time, and I love the guy and I miss the guy.”
