| | BOSTON -- A little disheartened but still as entertaining as
ever, Charles Barkley said Thursday that he hadn't changed his mind about retiring even though his farewell tour was interrupted by a career-ending knee injury.
"My heart is broken. My spirit is broken. I'm not going to
sugarcoat it, I'm down and depressed," the Houston Rockets forward
said, a day after tearing a tendon in his left knee against
Philadelphia, where his career began in 1984. "(But) I stand by
what I said last night."
|  | | 'My heart is broken. My spirit is broken,' said Barkley in Boston. |
Wearing a full-leg brace on the outside of his pants, Barkley
limped into the conference room at the Ritz-Carlton, where the
Rockets were staying for Friday night's game against Boston. He
said he came with the team out of respect for the Celtics, who had
planned a halftime ceremony to honor him and give him a piece of
the famous parquet floor.
"Basketball starts with the Lakers and Celtics. And the golden
age of basketball started with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson," he
said. "I make sure every time I see those guys they understand
that I appreciate what they did for me."
Although he called himself depressed, during a 45-minute news
conference Barkley sounded upbeat and his comments were as frank
and funny as ever. He joked about sex, he joked about golf, and he
joked about his feuds with fans, opponents -- and former teammates.
Asked if he had heard from Scottie Pippen, with whom he
exchanged very public insults this fall, Barkley quipped, "I think
Scottie's on my voice mail."
But others did call to wish him well: Michael Jordan and Tiger
Woods, Karl Malone and John Stockton, Greg Ostertag and even NBA
vice president Rod Thorn, who meted out many of the fines and
suspensions Barkley accrued during a Hall of Fame career in the
NBA.
Despite measuring a shade under 6-foot-5, Barkley established
himself as a force under the basket in two gold medal-winning
Olympics and 16 NBA seasons. He averaged 22 points and almost 12
rebounds while earning nine All-Star selections, and he won the NBA
MVP while with Phoenix in 1993.
He was selected one of the 50 best players in NBA history. But
he never won a championship.
And he said it doesn't bother him that he never will.
"I don't foresee the championship making my life any better. I
don't know how my life could get any better," he said. "I tell
you, my life has been a blast."
Barkley said he cried for three hours Wednesday night after
tearing a tendon in the first quarter of his farewell to
Philadelphia. That night, he didn't sleep at all.
"Me by myself in the middle of the night, it was hard," he
said. "It was hard, it's still hard, and it's going to get
harder."
But he hasn't seen the videotape of him wrenching his knee while
trying to block a shot.
"I haven't seen the replay and I'm not sure I want to," he
said. "It doesn't do me any good to do that."
Barkley, 36, repeated that he would be interested in
being a general manager but not a coach -- he doesn't like the
travel -- and he would consider television, movies, and politics.
Years ago, he had said he would like to be governor of Alabama.
"I'm open for suggestions," he said. "My No. 1 priority right
now is to rehab. This is an injury that's very serious and you
can't mess around with the rehab."
So, for the next six months there will be no golf. And even
after that, he doesn't expect to be playing any basketball on any
level.
"I started playing basketball when I was 9, and I've played
every day since then," he said. "But I'm not one of those guys
who's going to play in the church league for faded glory or
anything. I won't play anymore.
"And that's the thing I'm going to miss most," he said.
"Because basketball has given me everything in life."
| |
ALSO SEE
Feedback on Charles Barkley
Lawrence: Nobody will fill Barkley's shoes
Sound off on Sir Charles
Barkley ruptures tendon in knee; career is over
Pippen says he'll miss having Barkley around
MVP season highlight of Barkley's Suns tenure
Barkley injured as he says farewell to Philadelphia
Former teammates, opponents will miss Barkley
Rockets lose game, Barkley in Philadelphia
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Charles Barkley ruptures a tendon in his knee.
avi: 1055 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Charles Barkley talks about his career-ending injury.
RealVideo: 56.6
 Charles Barkley says his career was over before the season started.
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Charles Barkley is sad that he will not be able to play anymore.
wav: 182 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Charles Barkley says the game of basketball will go on.
wav: 108 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
 |
