Because 1) LeBron didn’t say his team was terrible. He said it was top-heavy and they need another playmaker, which is true. And while they’re the best in the East, they don’t appear to have a shot at winning another championship as currently constructed. 2) Barkley questioned LeBron’s will to compete, which as Shaq…

Yeah that sucks, but that’s basically every brick and mortar retail business.

As someone who spent many years working retail, the Circle of Life metric is not unique. We had similar metrics when I worked at Toys “R” Us and employees found plenty of ways to cheat the system. Thankfully, they weren’t ways that harmed customers really. But it was still frustrating that people felt they had to due…

It’s not even a question of whether he was right or not. I already said I agree with Barkley that LeBron’s comments were out of line. My point is that Barkley crossed a line when he said LeBron didn’t want to compete and LeBron had every right to clap back at him. Which he did in a way that entertained me. Which is…

I’m sure he deserved a flagrant foul because I’ve seen the play in question. Flagrant fouls are assessed or rescinded after a game is over on a regular basis. I find it ironic that you’re so whiney about the Green suspension after calling LeBron a whiney bitch. But by all means, keep spinning your wheels.

Yeah. If Pippen hadn’t come along, I could absolutely see Jordan pulling a LeBron and bolting Chicago to play with another superstar. They brought in Rodman for the second three-peat and I can’t imagine he and Jordan were really friends at all beforehand given the high level of animosity in those Bulls/Pistons games…

The fact that it was a “calculated decision” that they thought about doesn’t prove that it was a calculated decision designed to prolong the series or that it wasn’t a justified suspension. Can you really blame them for thinking extra long and hard before suspending a key player playing in the biggest game of the year…

I’ve been critical of their officiating on many occasions, but the NBA is run a lot better than the other sports leagues these days, especially the NFL. Although, granted, that’s a low bar. You’re acting like the NBA suspended Draymond specifically for that incident, but they suspended him because he accumulated too…

I don’t know, man. I can see Charles’ argument that he was talking about on-the-court stuff. But as Shaq pointed out, he said LeBron didn’t want to compete. That’s pretty personal. And Chuck’s gambling issues that LeBron alluded to aren’t basketball-related really, but the way he behaved on the court as a player seems…

Sure. Barkley definitely wasn’t at the top of his game by that point. And he was technically traded rather than going as a free agent. I don’t buy all the old-timer “I wanted to beat the best!” talk from any of them though. Everybody wants to play in the best work environment with the most talented, successful…

Yeah. How dare they suspend world renowned kinesiologist Draymond Green simply for performing a peer-reviewed medical study on a player’s scrotal area for the third time in a matter of weeks. So craven. Don’t they respect science?

Charles Barkley is a moron. LeBron should have stated his desire for moves a lot better, but that doesn’t make him a bitch. Certainly not when compared to bitchass Charles Barkley.

But yeah... I agree that LeBron accurately assessed his team’s limitations. My only issue is the implication he made that management hadn’t done enough. They’ve completely remade the team, with most decisions seemingly being suggested and/or approved by LeBron, over the last few years and they just made a mid-season…

Not that my team of choice would have a shot in hell anyways with Big Chief Triangle at the helm.

But if you add in a smaller amount of money from the website and some start-up cash from HBO, that could be enough to pay a decent number of people, right? Also, are we sure they have 65 full-time employees? What’s the source of that number, do you know?

Jack-O. It was definitely Jack-O.

Fair point. But the other Ringer podcasts seem to be pretty successful also. The association certainly doesn’t hurt.

Ben Stein? Was it Ben Stein? Chris Matthews? Umm... Prince Reibus?

Sleep on Made. Please sleep on Made. In fact, sleep on anything that features Sean “Puffy Puff P Diddy Daddy” Combs “acting.”

I can’t speak for everyone, but I’m on LeBron’s side of this while still believing that his initial comments were dumb. The team is capped out with guys LeBron wanted. What more does he expect? And yet, Barkley’s comments went way over the top and LeBron hit back with aplomb, which I appreciate. Nuance, man.