Charles Barkley may be known as one of the more fun-loving personalities in his post-playing career, but many who faced off against the Hall of Famer on the court didn’t share that sentiment. He was considered brash, rude, and downright confrontational. Charles Oakley, the legendary enforcer, also had a bone to pick with Barkley. In fact, he took it to a whole different level.
Advertisement
During an interview with ESPN over a decade ago, Oakley confessed he slapped Barkley. When questioned if the incident actually occurred during the NBA’s lockout, the 19-year veteran confirmed the story. Oakley then went on a tangent regarding his diminishing respect for Barkley over the years. The former All-Star explained how Chuck went from a quiet, contained personality to having no filter and saying whatever he wants, no matter who it hurts.
Oakley did acknowledge Barkley’s greatness for his size but also underlined how the Chuckster is too tough on players today. “I think [Barkley’s] too hard on a lot of these guys because he wasn’t a leader. He [Charles Barkley] wasn’t a role model. Like he said, he’s not a role model. He’s right about that,” Oakley shared on ESPN’s Highly Questionable.
Drafted one year apart in 1984 and 1985, respectively, Barkley and Oakley spent 15 years in the NBA together. As two of the game’s most feared power forwards, the pair ensured each battle between their teams would be a toss-up. Chuck did come away with 23 victories over 42 regular season contests, but Oakley’s Knicks swept Barkley’s Sixers in their one postseason matchup in 1988-89.
The Knicks legend then segued to another topic before diving any deeper into his altercation with Barkley. However, the 61-year-old explained his motive for the slap in the past.
Charles Oakley explained why he slapped Barkley
Oak shared what led up to the slap, which notably occurred during a 1995 lockout meeting. During an appearance on All the Smoke, the 61-year-old seemed to reveal how his pettiness got the best of him. “Next time, [Barkley] says anybody name again, Chuck, Charles, Charlie,” Oakley said of Barkley. “If he say any of them names again, I’m going to smack him when I see him,” Oakley explained.
The veteran big man quickly proved to his fellow players that he wasn’t bluffing, either. “I’m walking in. I call [Anthony Mason], Derrick Coleman, Chris Mills. I come in, I look around and I see Chuck. I go straight to him. I’m like, `What you say?'” Oak continued. Apparently, Chuck was quick to drop one of Oakley’s banned names, which proved to be enough for the Ohio native to lay down a hearty slap on Sir Charles.
Oakley apparently doesn’t like being viewed as a fighter or “tough guy”, underlining how he only gets scrappy when he needs to defend himself. In this scenario, though, there’s not much Oak can say to convince others that he wasn’t the aggressor.
