Charles Barkley

He was named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams.

Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on TNT and CBS Sports.

Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "the Bread Truck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Though shorter than the typical power forward, he used his strength and aggression to become one of the NBA's best rebounders and scorers.

Later, Barkley was named the SEC Player of the Decade for the 1980s by the Birmingham Post-Herald.

An All-American at Auburn University, Barkley was drafted as a junior by the Philadelphia 76ers with the fifth pick of the 1984 NBA draft.

He received numerous awards, including Southeastern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year (1984), three All-SEC selections and one Second Team All-American selection.

In his rookie season, Barkley was named to the All-Rookie First Team in 1985.

In the 1986–87 season, Barkley led the league in rebounding average and earned his first rebounding title.

He was named the All-Star Game MVP in 1991, and in 1993 with the Phoenix Suns, he was voted the league's MVP and led the Suns to the NBA Finals.

He was frequently involved in on- and off-court fights and sometimes stirred national controversy, such as in March 1991 when he spat on a young girl while attempting to spit at a heckler, and 1993 when he declared that sports figures should not be considered role models.

Since retiring as a player, Barkley has had a successful career as an NBA analyst.

He works for TNT on Inside the NBA alongside Shaquille O'Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson as a studio pundit for its coverage of NBA games (for which he has won four Sports Emmy Awards).

In addition, Barkley has written several books and has shown an interest in politics.

Barkley was born and raised in Leeds, Alabama, 17 miles east of Birmingham.

He was the first black baby born at a segregated, all-White Town hospital and was in the first group of black students at his elementary school.

His parents divorced when he was young after his father abandoned the family, which included younger brother Darryl Barkley.

His mother remarried and they had a son, John Glenn.

Another brother, Rennie, died in infancy.

His stepfather was killed in an accident when Charles was 11 years old.

He attended Leeds High School.

As a junior, Barkley stood 5 ft and weighed 220 lb. He failed to make the varsity team and was named as a reserve.

However, during the summer Barkley grew to 6 ft and earned a starting position on the varsity as a senior.

He averaged 19.1 points and 17.9 rebounds per game and led his team to a 26–3 record en route to the state semi-finals.

Despite his improvement, Barkley garnered no attention from college scouts until the state high school semi-finals, where he scored 26 points against Alabama's most highly recruited player, Bobby Lee Hurt.

An assistant to Auburn University's head coach, Sonny Smith, was at the game and reported seeing, "a fat guy... who can play like the wind".

Barkley was soon recruited by Smith and majored in business management while attending Auburn University.

Barkley played collegiate basketball at Auburn for three seasons.

Although he struggled to control his weight, he excelled as a player and led the SEC in rebounding each year.

He became a popular crowd-pleaser, exciting the fans with dunks and blocked shots that belied his lack of height and overweight frame.

It was not uncommon to see the hefty Barkley grab a defensive rebound and, instead of passing, dribble the entire length of the court and finish at the opposite end with a two-handed dunk.

His physical size and skills ultimately earned him the nickname "The Round Mound of Rebound" and the "Crisco Kid".

During his college career, Barkley played the center position, despite being shorter than the average center.

His height, officially listed as 6ft 6in, is stated as 6ft 4in in his book, I May Be Wrong but I Doubt It.

He became a member of Auburn's All-Century team and still holds the Auburn record for career field goal percentage with 62.6%.

He also competed in the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games, winning two gold medals as a member of the U.S. national team.

Barkley was an 11-time NBA All-Star, 11-time member of the All-NBA Team, and the 1993 Most Valuable Player (MVP).

In 2000, Barkley retired as the fourth player in NBA history to achieve 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, and 4,000 assists.

Barkley is a two-time inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2006 for his individual career, and in 2010 as a member of the 1992 Olympic "dream team."

Barkley was popular with the fans and media and made the NBA's All-Interview Team for his last 13 seasons in the league.