Friday, March 2nd, 2012 at 9:10 am  |  44 responses

Charles Barkley: Michael Jordan Doing a Bad Job as Bobcats Owner


Sir Charles was highly critical of the job his buddy MJ has done so far in Charlotte, placing some of the blame on the folks Jordan surrounds himself with. From ESPN: “I think the biggest problem has been I don’t know if he has hired enough people around him who he will listen to,’ Barkley said. ‘One thing about being famous is the people around you, you pay all their bills so they very rarely disagree with you because they want you to pick up the check. They want to fly around on your private jet so they never disagree with you. I don’t think Michael has hired enough people around him who will disagree … I love Michael, but he just has not done a good job,’ Barkley said. ‘Even though he is one of my great friends, I can’t get on here and tell you he’s done a great job. He has not done a great job, plain and simple.’ Jordan’s Bobcats have the NBA’s worst record at 4-29 and have lost 19 of their last 20 games. [...] When Jordan told him the Bobcats were eyeing Gonzaga star Adam Morrison with the third overall pick of the 2006 draft, Barkley said he questioned his friend on the decision. ‘I said ‘Michael, I think you should take Brandon Roy, and he said ‘We like Adam Morrison,’ Barkley said. ‘I said ‘Adam Morrison can’t play. I said let me ask you a question, did you say Adam Morrison first and [the Bobcats front office staff] agreed with you or did they say Adam Morrison first? He said ‘What do you mean?’ I said ‘Michael, nobody wants to disagree with you. You are such a powerful personality nobody, especially your flunkies as I call them, the flunkies are never going to disagree with you.’ Adam Morrison is a nice kid. He can’t play in the NBA.’ Morrison started just 28 NBA games and is now playing overseas.”

  • Add a Comment
  • Share
  • RSS

Tags: , ,

  • Paul H

    Mike has gotten round like a protected species for decades now, immune to criticism and surrounded by sycophants. That was not so much a problem when he was the greatest player on the planet, but trying to run a franchise you have to either have incredible knowledge and foresight, or be willing to listen to those who do. Seems like Mike has neither ability.

  • Justin G.

    Is he clamoring for a job? Those conversations would be great to listen in on.

  • Young 23

    Damn Chuck. Right on point.

  • http://www.google.com/news BETCATS

    True. Although Cho now gets to a have a say in moves. I’d say if we don’t have a core in place within 3 years MJ really fu(ked things up.

  • http://www.yahoo.com The Fury

    His Airness should hire Chuck.

  • tom

    if chuck plays in boris’ jersey the bobcats could make a serious run!! :)

  • hushabomb

    You better hope you get Harrison Barnes or Anthony Davis or Jared Sullinger or else this is a waste of a season…..

  • Sparker

    morrison looked to everyone like a great prospect. he led the damn ncaa in scoring. no one was saying “he can’t play,” and if chuck said that at the time, i certainly don’t remember it. but CRAZY to think that b roy, lamarcus. bargnani, rudy gay, ronnie brewer, rondo, shannon brown, jordan farmar, daniel gibson, paul millsap and leon powe have all had better nba careers by far.

  • MikeC.

    @tom – I don’t see how they could pull it off. Chuck is in way better shape than Diaw. They’d get caught in no time.

  • http://staticseth.blogspot.com/ Seth

    Bobcats are in rough shape. I still don’t understand why they traded Gerald Wallace for a bunch of crap. They need to make a serious overhaul and hope for a high draft pick as well.

  • http://www.reverbnation.com/tray24 T-Ray

    Not sure if MJ was in his position at this point but I was puzzled when he gave up Crash and Cpt. Jack..I mean that team made the freaking playoffs.

  • Lion O

    How come game don’t recognize game, that with regard to M.J drafting players. The genesis was with Kwame Brown.

  • Paul H

    He has been making David Kahn look like Jerry West. But try telling him that. “Nobody puts Michael In the corner…” And yes that was a Dirty Dancing reference. lol

  • JoeMaMa

    You know, the Bobcats suck, but at least they’re not partially bad. Sounds funny to say, but the NBA is a star driven league, and it takes a top 3 pick to get one. I think MJ knows this much: they’re tanking now, grabbing up quality picks, and will make their push in 3 years. If that’s not the plan, then MJ truly does suck.

  • http://redoftoothandclaw.ca/ niQ

    @Lion O. Because MJ doesn’t think anyone is on his level. So when he looks at draft prospects, he thinks they all suck and he’ll just throw darts at a wall full of names.

  • jimmer

    You rarely hear Charles be that diplomatic. MJ probably is letting them tank, he basically said so with the Gerald Wallace trade. Lets check back in 2 years. If nothing’s changed, Charles is right. If the ‘Cats are winning, then MJ finally figured it out.

  • http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-bulls-talk/2011 Diesel

    @Sparker – A lot of people were saying that both Morrison and Reddick were overrated and just good college players.

  • http://nonstopsports1.blogspot.com/ LaKid

    Jeez, what tipped him off?

  • http://cnbc.com JTaylor21

    The fact that MJ can lose 175 million in a divorce and countless millions gambling and still have 10 times more money.

  • anynomous

    why is chuck the only one who stands up to MJ. Jordan is by far the worst owner in the nba. And I cant understand for the life of me why someone who was the driving force behind kwame brown being selected as the #1 draft pick, would then be a good candidate to take over a new organization. MJ is clueless. choosing adam morrison as the #3 pick was just stupid. It doesn`t matter if he led the ncaa in scoring if the competition in gonzaga`s conference was subpar. That`s how you most accurately evaluate college players based on their competition and the subsequent results when you go up against the best players and the best teams. that year, gonzaga may as well have been in a league all by itself because there was almost no elite competition with nba potential within that conference. Fact: Soft college scorers who absorb little to no contact and lack the ability to beat their defenders off the dribble, usually do not correspond to good nba scorers/players.

  • IAMORANGE4EVER

    MJ’s Bobcats are BITING THE BULLET so they can UPGRADE.

  • James Aka…

    The observation about rich people and their people is indisputable. Michael Jackson essentially died because of this (find me a doctor who will give me what I want when i want it as opposed to find me a doctor). In Jordan’s case, it is compounded by his competitiveness and ability on the court to will things through. It doesn’t work like that when you’re a general, only as a soldier.

  • Sparker

    @diesel. sure, they said that, but the consensus was that he was a great prospect, and no one would have let him drop out of the top 6 or 7. my point is that picking a mor was not like picking, say, renaldo balkman, who no one was high on other than zeke. it was a reasonable, even conservative pick that didn’t work out at all. considering mj’s other moves as a gm, at least that one was understandable. @anonymous. you just described jj reddick to the letter, and he’s turned out to be a pretty good player.

  • jimmer

    Michael Jordan is not the worst owner in the NBA. Robert Sarver is.

  • http://nba.com GP23

    Actually, with all due respect Chuck.. Adam Morrison can play, it’s just that he never got enough minutes, due to Trevor Ariza and Ron Artest with the Lakers. Kobe even said on Jimmy Kimmel he can REALLY play… it was a confidence thing with him apparently. But still, Brandon Roy is who they should have drafted in the first place.

  • titanic

    @orange they have been biting the bullet since they were integrated into the league as an expansion team. how many seasons does a team need to tank before they upgrade? how many negative transactions does an owner have to make before he`s called out? The defining moments for this organization thus far were the transactions that were made following their first playoff appearance. When a team makes the playoffs for the first time in their short history, at the very least you want to construct a team that has the ability to get back to the playoffs the next season, not blow it up and then rebuild. Inexplicable.

  • jimmer

    Also, if they’d drafted Brandon Roy, they’d be getting about as much return out of it this year as they are getting for their morrison pick. Zilch. Just sayin’.

  • http://idunkonthem.blogspot.com albie1kenobi

    nice analogy by James aka.
    we all love MJ as a player, but man, bobcats are worse than D-league teams.

  • LA Huey

    Chuck’s got a point. But Chuck would be a bad hire for basketball knowledge because he’s made more ridiculous statements than Jordan’s made bad basketball moves.

  • http://www.nesn.com/2012/02/kobe-bryant-says-hes-better-than-michael-jordan-second-to-wilt-chamberlain-as-best-nba-player-ever-v.html shutup

    This is why Barkley got that job, because even if people disagree with what he’s saying, he will speak the truth(as he sees it) I’ve never seen him shy away from criticizing someone or pamper anyone so he’ll be liked (ala Ahmad Rashad)

  • http://slamonline.com The Philosopher

    Let me find out that Jordan is the Elgin Baylor of owners…

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKT7UybFxe4 IAMORANGE4EVER

    @titanic I understand what you are saying. MJ definitely has to turn it around this time around.

  • bdogg

    i am a big mj fan but lets be real he has done a terrible job! kemba is a start..great pick! that said lets see what happens when they get another player say davis from kentucky or barnes from his ala matear. can walker develop into a lead guard like westbrook. run an nba offense and score or is he going to be like ai and is an undersized 2 that guns..i am leaning on the former but time will tell! morrison was a terrible pick. not athletic enough to cut it in today’s L! period!

  • Darryl

    The situation with MJ is he paid a few dollars for the ball club. He had no roster but a good coach all those guys that were there fro when they went to the playoffs were draining the reserves. StephJack…12million, Gerald Wallace 10mill, that point guard 7-8million, that a lot of money that wasn’t making any. They had no fans and that’s why Bob let it go. Given the new situation, the Bobcats will make money, have nearly 40 million under the salary and have some good cheap players that can be molded. Also they need a coach that has the time to get it together, Silas is old and near his end. Its not going to be easy but it will take a while. But Charles is right people are scared of MJ because of his personality attack. And that cold stare…

  • Heals

    The 1 thing he’s got going for him is that you don’t want to be middle of the pack bad. Being awful is better than a 7/8 seed or just missing the playoffs in Cha’s case…

  • Chris Kalish

    Maybe Michael should try to pull Phil Jackson out of retirement, either as coach, general manager or both.

    If Michael had more friends like Chuck, maybe he’d learn more, faster, and he and the Bobcats would make even more money.

    Even Jordan wasn’t picked first in the NBA draft. Did anyone know how great he would become? I don’t think HE even knew. BUT, he worked his ass off!

    That is the example, & the caliber of talent he should be looking for.
    OVERACHIEVERS!

  • http://government@hotmail.com peaches

    MJ is so 1990′s, lets get over him. He was a great star when he played, lots of wins and championships. While in DC he showed us he sucks as a basketball manager. Hey- not all worker bees can become powerful knowledgable owners, he is a prime example. He should have gone aftr great b-ball thinkers like John Thompson, tried to get that kid Johnny Dawkins aways from coach K, perhaps even tried going after some really smart old retired coaches and used them as the foundation. He also needs to be an absentee owner and let someone else run the shop and go play with his girl friend, travel, shop and enjoy life. He worked hard when he played so he deserves to chill, he just needs a reality check and Barkley gave it to him— Good for you Chuck……

    You guys remember Barkley in those old spice commercials back in the day— lol

  • anynomous

    @chriskalish one of the main problems in selecting draft picks nowadays is the lack of talent coming out. I think the nba may become even more dependent on international draftees unless something changes within the next few years. In most recent drafts, its like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Because outside of a handful of players, the selections are uneducated guesses with very little to go on since more and more college players are leaving after their first year. So, I dont think its smart to totally rely on drafts to find talent. I think free agency is more reliable since you already know what the player is capable of at that point. But what top free agents want to play for the bobats?

  • IamYou

    Yes!!! Chuck Yes!!!

  • Justin G.

    I agre with anynomous here. Drafting is a tough way to go because all these guys use college for is a springboard to the NBA and they can’t get there soon enough. Unfortunately, not playing in college actually hinders a lot of guys imo. They don’t learn the game, they aren’t mature phyically or mentally and now they’re playing against men. I wish players would stay in the college at least through their junior year but the money and fame of the NBA is just too appealing.

  • trueballer4life

    lmfao chuckster ur the best CANT listen to those Flunkies!!!.. they will say YES to every THING Micheal jordan will says that so true.., Jordan needs to fire an re hire quick an take his friend chucks advice…!

  • http://www.t-mac.com/tmac/index unf*ckwitable

    Chuck just nailed it. MJ has done terrible with the Bobcats, bad move after bad move, the arrogant prick wont admit it but, if he could have his time over again knowing what he knows now he would probably still take Kwame just as a F#ck u.

  • andy

    i reckon the bobcats last draft was good.
    kemba n biyombo were two solid picks.
    Id be looking at Davis or Sullinger. Who are the other good bigger bodies this year?

  • richard

    Jordan might be the best player to play in NBA,

    But he is definite worse NBA owner, picking 2 terrible top pick (brown and Morrison) Trade away their top player for nearly nothing (Captain Jack and Wallace)Before they were trade away, bobcat was a decent mediocre team, now they are the worst team. I surprise they don’t had the lowest payroll as result. They definite had one of the lowest attended fan.

Advertisement