“I Got Money Under the Table In College”: When Charles Barkley Called For $1 Billion/Year Profit Making NCAA to Pay College Athletes

Charles Barkley is one of the most flagrant analysts in the NBA media, who has never shied away from putting forth his opinion on live TV.

However, in his second career which has now spanned over two decades, the $50 million worth former NBA star has never been taken as seriously despite making some great points, be it once in a few months.

We are talking about one such instance where the TNT analyst unexpectedly revealed his “under the table” earnings during his college career, but also told how the NCAA should pay players for what they bring in.

Also read: “Charles Barkley Doesn’t Get Enough Credit”: 7x NBA Champ Considers Sixers Legend his ‘Toughest’ Match-up

Charles Barkley once called out NCAA for paying college athletes

At least 6 years back, in his appearance on In Depth With Graham Bensinger, Chuck talked about his beliefs on NCAA players getting paid so that they could pay for their dates and buy their cars.

The former NBA MVP revealed how he “got money under the table in college” from the agents and advocated for teenagers to get paid.

Chuck said that years before it actually caught fire. In 2022, while they still don’t get a salary, the star athletes in College earn some kind of income.

College athletes are earning money through endorsement deals and commercials

With the ruling by the Supreme court last year, college players were allowed to monetize their names, images, and likeness. That finally gave them the right to get endorsement deals and commercials.

Yet, NCAA is adamant about not paying its players despite earning well over $1 Billion every year just through TV deals.

Having multiple decade-long deals with some big TV Networks, they have around $20 billion deals running. Just the Big Ten, for instance, will make $7 billion across seven years for its deal with FOX, CBS, NBC, and Peacock.

Athletes who make it to the big leagues get their due. But the ones who don’t? People are getting exploited for decades and get nothing in return. Mind-bogglingly unfair. Isn’t it? That too in the “most ideal” democracy in the world.

Also read: “Chris Webber! You Cannot Disrespect the President!”: When Charles Barkley and 5x All-Star Re-Enacted George Bush’s ‘Shoe-Throwing’ Incident

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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