There Was One Time When Charles Barkley Bested Michael Jordan

Shandel Richardson | Jul 13, 2024

Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley during the 1993 NBA Finals in Chicago. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY

There were few times Hall of Famer Charles Barkley got the best of Michael Jordan.

It happened in 1992 when both were playing for what most call the greatest team ever assembled. Jordan and Barkley were members of the Olympic Dream Team that featured the likes of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Karl Malone.

It was the first time the United State used professional players. Naturally, the team went 8-0 on the way to easily winning the gold medal.

What many forget was Barkley led the team in scoring at 18 points a game, ahead of Jordan's 14.9.

"I led the team in scoring and rebounding," Barkley said on an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast. "It was easy, though. Basketball was easy to me.

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It should be noted that Malone led the team in rebounding. Still, Barkley showed the world he was among the best players. Jordan, though, owns Barkley in just about every other category. He won six NBA championships to Barkley's zero.

Jordan is also considered the best player in league history by most fans and analysts. But Barkley had his one moment in Barcelona.

"I got the best compliment ever from [coach] Chuck Daly," Barkley said. "He pulled me aside one day, `You're the second-best basketball player in the world.' I said, `who better than me?' We both started laughing. Obviously, Michael was it."'

Shandel Richardson is the publisher for Back In The Day NBA. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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