During an appearance on Monday’s edition of “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz,” Barkley called out Jordan for “selective prosecution” with his teammates. Episode 7 of ESPN’s documentary series “The Last Dance” explored Jordan’s leadership methods, which included harsh criticism of his teammates. Jordan also occasionally got into physical altercations during practices, most notably punching Steve Kerr in the eye.
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“Well, you know he has selective prosecution over there, right? He knows who to pick on,” Barkley said. “There’s certain guys you can’t treat like that. You have to know what guys you can treat badly, and they’re gonna accept it. Screaming at guys all the time, punching guys — come on, man.
“There’s certain guys that would whoop the hell out of you if you tried doing that. He has selective prosecution. I mean, Scott Burrell and Steve Kerr. Come on, man.”
When asked at the end of Episode 7 about not being viewed as a “nice guy,” Jordan delivered an emotional monologue explaining why he pushed his teammates so hard.
As for the rift between the two Hall of Famers, Barkley doesn’t appear to be interested in ending the feud anytime soon.
“That’s never gonna happen, Dan. You can let that go,” Barkley said. “That’s never gonna happen. … Michael’s doing great. Chuck’s doing great. But that’s never gonna happen, brother. I’m too stubborn for that.”