Charles Barkley criticized LeBron James’ interview. He took issue with LeBron’s comments after Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets.
At the time, LeBron and the Los Angeles Lakers were down 4-0 to Denver and had been swept in the series. LeBron said, “We’ll see what happens. I don’t know. I have a lot to think about, honestly. I’ve got a lot of things to think about, my future as a basketball player,” LeBron said. He hinted at the possibility of retirement.
Immediately, the spotlight turned to LeBron. LeBron is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and still the league’s most popular player 20 years after his debut. LeBron’s words, which seemed to hint at retirement, had a ripple effect.
Denver, which had reached the Finals for the first time in franchise history, was buried. Barkley took note.
“I think LeBron said it on purpose,” Barkley told U.S. radio program The Dan Patrick Show on Monday. It’s all calculated,” he said, adding, 메이저놀이터 “There’s no way LeBron is retiring. I was disappointed in LeBron after that interview. I was frustrated watching TV for days after the Western Finals. All they talked about was whether or not LeBron was going to retire, but nothing about how great Denver played. I got so angry that I turned off the TV.”
“He must have known the reporters were going to ask him if he was going to retire, it wasn’t an off-the-cuff answer,” he said, once again dismissing the LeBron retirement speculation by saying, “LeBron is not retiring.”
In the US, the odds are in favor of LeBron extending his career. After all, LeBron still has two years and $97 million left on his contract with the Lakers. That’s a lot of money to give up.
He also has a dream of playing in the NBA with his son, Brownie James. He recently enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC) and could be in the NBA as early as next summer.
