“That’s the blind leading the blind!”: Charles Barkley’s hatred for the $2.77 Billion NBA Franchise dates as far back as the 2002 All-Star Game

NBA legend Charles Barkley does not like his former team, the Houston Rockets, with his outspoken hatred dating all the way to 2002

During his 16-year NBA career, Charles Barkley established himself as one of the best power forwards in the game. Despite his 6’6 frame, Chuck used his strength and aggressiveness to dominate on the boards, while being an excellent scorer. He earned one NBA MVP honors, 11x NBA All-Star honors, 11x All-NBA selections during his time in the league.

Chuck ended his NBA career having played his final four seasons with the Houston Rockets. He teamed up with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. Barkley battled with injuries in all of those four seasons, and could never reach his potential. Unfortunately for him, that meant hanging up his boots without an NBA ring.

However, Chuck’s saltiness against the Rockets goes beyond winning a ring. In the 1998-99 season, he took a mere $1 Million contract from the Rockets so they could sign Scottie Pippen and contend for the title. However, that did not pay off, and the Rockets tried pinning the blame on Chuck.

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Charles Barkley displayed his hatred towards the Rockets at the 2002 Slam Dunk Contest

In 2002, Charles Barkley was with the TNT crew at the All-Star Game in Philadelphia. After playing 11 All-Star games as a player, this was Chuck’s second game as a caster. The TNT crew was at the sidelines for the much awaited Slam Dunk Contest. The participants were Steve Francis from the Rockets, Desmond Mason from the Seattle Supersonics, Jason Richardson from the Warriors, and Gerald Wallace from the Kings.

Francis was a former teammate of Chuck’s from his time on the Rockets. One would expect that means Barkley might root for him, right?

Nah, instead, that made sure Chuck was ready to mock Francis. During a dunk attempt, Francis enrolled the help of his teammate Cuttino Mobley. Their attempt wasn’t going right, and Barkley pounced on the chance to mock the two.

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I guess if one wants to be safe in the NBA media, they need to stay on Charles Barkley’s good side.