In 1984, Charles Barkley started an illustrious basketball career in Philadelphia. During his playing days, Chuck suited up for the Sixers, the Suns, and the Rockets. Even after retirement, Barkley has remained in the public eye, as a beloved media personality.
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He boasts of sincerity with a great sense of humor to match, and those tendencies were on full display recently when Barkley was sharing his posthumous plans with Arizona Sports.
“I’m never leaving Phoenix alive. When I leave Phoenix, they’re going to cremate my fat a** and take- You know, my a** is so big, I’m like, I want some ashes in Alabama, I want some ashes in Phoenix and I want the rest at a casino in Vegas,” Charles Barkley quipped.
Charles Barkley has oddly specific plans for his death.
"My ass is so big, I'm like, I want some ashes in Alabama, I want some ashes in Phoenix and I want the rest at a casino in Vegas. We just have to pick out what casino." pic.twitter.com/T4WTYwDlyM
— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) October 23, 2024
Interestingly, Sir Charles doesn’t love all the cities he played in equally. Philadelphia, where he played the first 8 seasons of his career, and Houston, where he played his last four, didn’t make it onto his ‘final’ tour. But Phoenix, the most successful stop during his time in the NBA, has clearly carved out a special spot in the 61-year-old’s life.
Then there’s Alabama. Chuck has never been short on love for his home state. After the US Supreme Court withdrew affirmative action in higher education, Barkley amended his will to leave $5 million in scholarships for Black students to study at his alma mater. “That’s just my way of trying to make sure Auburn stays diverse,” the former Auburn Tiger expressed.
And then, of course, we have Las Vegas, where Sir Charles has lost more than he has earned. “There’s probably been seven times that I won a million dollars,” he previously revealed. “But there’s probably been 25 times I’ve lost a million.” Perhaps Barkley wants some of his ashes spread in Vegas to remind the patrons that he too was once one of them.
Of course, Chuck has beaten his gambling problem now and clearly has enough distance from those days to approach it with levity. That is his trademark style after all, whether he’s talking about Las Vegas or death.
Charles Barkley has a humble perspective on his legacy
In June, during the NBA Finals, Sir Charles shocked the world by announcing that this might be his last season. Thankfully, two months later he reversed the decision and swore allegiance to TNT for the rest of his career.
But during that fiasco, Barkley’s way of thinking became clearer. He expressed that he did not want to die on television, but instead in the loving presence of his family and friends.
Ever since the birth of his grandson, Henry, the Hall of Famer has talked about wanting to be present as the 18-month-old grows up. For him, that’s what legacy is.
“My legacy? Oh, like, when I die that a few people are upset, they’ll be sad for a little bit. Some people, we’re glad when they die, we know that. And I just, when I die, people say ‘Oh man, that’s sad’ and be sad for a little bit, and keep it moving. I mean that sincerely,” Charles Barkley expressed in 2019 when visiting Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama.
