Steve Kerr and Charles Barkley have shared more than just a few laughs. From sharing the court during their playing days to the screen during Kerr's days at TNT, to even golfing alongside each other in the offseason.
The two former players, now into very different roles in their careers, still come close to butting heads due to their often-sarcastic comments, giving the former the perfect platform to respond to Barkley's aggressive comments regarding a different scheduling with less rigorous traveling itineraries.
“Back-to-backs don't bother me,” said Kerr, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “Four and five nights are tough, but eight (games) in 13 days in eight cities, ending on a back-to-back Minnesota to San Antonio. That made no sense.”
“The league has eliminated that stuff. Back-to-backs are fine. Even this year, all the national TV games that we're playing, I believe we only have one back-to-back (on national TV) — Houston to Dallas, a 45-minute flight. The league has gotten really smart. And the reason it's smart is because it affects performance. I know there are people complaining about it.”
Having set the stage for it, Kerr didn't fail to nail the final blow to this argument.
“I know Barkley is saying, ‘Oh, they're a bunch of babies.' But we're trying to present a good product,” said Kerr. “And we're going to play way better if our back-to-back is Houston, Dallas, rather than Minnesota to San Antonio, going to bed at 5 in the morning.”
“I know Charles would have been perfect in that situation when he played. That back-to-back wouldn't have bothered him. His conditioning was so good anyway, it wouldn't have mattered.”
Kerr's comments will surely be played back for Barkley once Inside The NBA gets underway, as his often-charged style of takes can have its drawback.
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