Fire up NBA 2K18 and you'll be greeted with the familiar voices of Ernie Johnson Jr, Kenny “The Jet” Smith, and Shaquille O'Neal doing some pre-game analysis before your favorite team takes on its opponent.

For many years, there's been one notable absentee from the popular set of Inside The NBA — none other than the Loud Mound of Rebound — Charles Barkley.

Sir Charles has a simple reason to abstain from appearing in the popular video game — money. But it's not money for his pockets that he is seeking, but for those who came before him.

“Unless they give the retired players x-amount of money they cannot use my likeness,” said Barkley during in an interview with Scoop B Radio. “And, I think I’m not even going to think about that anymore. They’re gonna give some money to the retired players, or they’ll never be able to use my likeness, period.”

The players actively employed by the NBA receive a portion of copyright income for the use of their likeness, while the NBA receives the rest and shares that income with their respective team owners.

Yet the use of legendary teams like the Los Angeles Lakers of the 50s and 60s, the Philadelphia 76ers of the 80s, among others, often go unrewarded, as the game portrays them without a need to compensate them, as they are no longer paid by the NBA — only paying the NBA for the right to their images.

Barkley is determined to be the one to stand alone in this issue, even if his fellow former players from Inside The NBA are willing to take part in the game.

“My job is to take care of the older players,” added Barkley. “We’ve been having this argument with NBA 2K for 20 years now.”

“Listen, that game makes hundreds of millions of dollars. They can use the write-off. Listen, my phone is always open.”