Charles Barkley has never been one to pull his punches. The Hall of Famer and all-time great commentator hasn’t been shy about voicing his displeasure with the current NBA product. Recently, some other members of the media and Lakers Coach JJ Redick have called him out for his negativity, and last night, The Round Mound Of Rebound fired back in typical fashion.
Hot off getting family photos with the rest of the guys done, Barkley was on Inside The NBA when the subject of JJ Redick came up. He, of course, did not hold back, launching into a diatribe about how he’s not the one “jacking up a hundred threes a night” and how JJ should be concerned about his job security because the Lakers have fired their last two coaches and now he’s the next in line putting “makeup on that pig.” You can check out his full quote below, which is widely circulating on social media…
He said something about we’re the reason people ain’t watching this crappy product we got. Us? Like we’re out there jacking up a hundred threes a night… JJ, you come for the king, you better not miss. I can get you, brother. Remember, I got your Lakers game. You can’t hide them flaws they got. You just a dead man walking. They got rid of Frank Vogel who did a good job. They got rid of Darvin Ham who did a good job. But you came out there thinking you were gonna change things with that same ugly girl you went on a date with. Lakers stink. He came in there thinking ‘I can make this thing work.’ The hell you can. Put some makeup on that pig. The Lakers stink, man.
Now, to say Redick went after Barkley would be a little disingenuous. There has been a lot of talk recently about how NBA ratings have been down quite a bit over the past few years. The conversation has gotten so loud that even league officials have commented on the record about it recently. As part of this conversation, Jason McIntyre, co-host of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, said Inside The NBA has done “more damage” to the NBA over the last decade than anything else. Video of his comments went viral on social media, and they only accelerated the conversation.
Redick was asked about his take on what’s going on, and he gave a pretty thoughtful four minute answer that pointed to a lot of different factors. He talked about the rise of streaming services and how hard it is for some fans to figure out how to watch the product in their local markets. He talked about how he doesn’t necessarily agree with the narrative about how the game is being played because while three point attempts are way up, so are attempts close to the basket, meaning what we’ve actually lost are long two point attempts. And finally, he talked about how he feels the media, as a group, is too negative, and it likely impacts fan perception. Here’s that portion of his quote…
If I’m a casual fan and you tell me every time I turn on the television that the product sucks, well, I’m not going to watch the product. That’s really what has happened over the last 10 to 15 years. I don’t know why. It’s not funny to me. Nothing is entertaining to me. This game should be celebrated. I’ve watched the league evolve. I’m in this league right now. I can tell you with fact that the league is more talented and skilled than it was 18 years ago when I was drafted. That’s a fact.
I think a lot of this comes down to what you perceive the job of a commentator like Charles Barkley to be. Is it his job, as someone doing halftime analysis and post-game to hype up the players and try to sell the league? Or is it his job to just open his mouth and say whatever he wants?
It’s definitely true that the Inside The NBA guys are often negative about the product they’re watching (and even their own bosses), but as someone who consumes a lot of NBA content, I feel like they’re saying exactly what I want them to say. I don’t like watching guys take a step back three with a hand in their face. I didn’t enjoy watching the Bulls and Hornets miss a combined 75 three pointers a few weeks ago. I want them to call these things out, and to me, it’s the reason why Inside The NBA has been the best studio show for the last decade (and probably why Timothee Chalamet wants to play co-host Ernie Johnson in a biopic).
But I also understand where Redick is coming from. The NBA has a problem right now. Ratings are down, and there’s a lot of negativity surrounding the game. Some of that negativity is absolutely valid. A lot of people, myself included, like to watch defense. They like to watch physical play. They like to watch ball movement. And there are a significant number of NBA games right now that don’t have enough of any of it. I don’t know if they need to move the three point line back or they need to let players be a little more physical on defense, but something needs to change.
At the same time though, that’s not every NBA game. There are a lot of fantastic games still being played, and as Redick pointed out in his full quote, there are more different styles of basketball being played than people are giving the league credit for. Not every team has assembled a roster that’s entirely constructed around jacking up three pointers. The league (and perhaps the commentators) have done a poor job of telling that story.
As for the job security of both men, I think they’ll probably be fine, at least for a little while. Inside The NBA, which was written off as imminently cancelled after TNT lost the rights to air NBA games, was given a last minute reprieve by ESPN. Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson will continue to work for TNT, but their show will be broadcast on ESPN as part of a financial agreement between the two networks (at least as long as they can work out scheduling issues).
And while it’s unclear whether things will work out long-term in Los Angeles, I’m pretty confident Redick will get at least a few years to try and make it work. He’s a widely respected basketball mind around the league, and while the Lakers have had some significantly struggles this season, they’ve won seven of their last ten and seem to be figuring some things out.
