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BUENA VISTA LAKE, Fla. – The two NBA stars have exchanged insults in recent years. Now, Charles Barkley and Basket State Hall of Famer, striker of the Golden State Warriors Draymond Green, have the opportunity to exchange barbs directly.
Barkley and Green will be part of “The Arena”, a new one-hour NBA show that TNT will launch on July 20, will air every evening until July 24 and will then continue to restart the regular NBA season (30 July) and in the playoffs (17 August). Champion Cari will host the show which will also include NBA star Dwyane Wade.
During the 2018 NBA playoffs, Barkley was irritated by Green’s outbreaks on the pitch. So Barkley said he would like to “punch him in the face” and challenged Green’s opponents to do the same thing. Green challenged Barkley to “punch me in the face when you see me” and compared Barkley’s comment with fans who needlessly threaten on Twitter. Barkley then apologized to Green and his mother.
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This season, Barkley has become critical of Green’s game and engagement level while the Warriors (15-50) have faced key starts (Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala) and key injuries (Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson). In an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show, Barkley had compared Green to “the least famous person in the boy band, and he thinks he’s a star, and he isn’t.” Green, three-star All-Star three times in part because of his ability to defend all five positions, then criticized Barkley for never winning an NBA title. He also added, “Barkley should stop before I go get his job, because I can do it too.”
Well, Green did a job on the air. However, it will not come at Barkley’s expense. “The Arena” will focus on issues beyond any disagreement between Green and Barkley. The series, which will collaborate with Bleacher Report, will focus on the coronavirus pandemic, Black Lives Matter, systemic racism and how the NBA will go through a season without fans at the ESPN’s World Wide of Sports Complex after stopping operations there. ‘March 11th. He also plans to present various contributions from a well-known journalist who frequently faces racial issues (Jemele Hill), a rapper and activist (Killer Mike) and an Oscar-winning director (Lesley Chilcott). The show will also be streamed on the Bleacher Report app and on the NBA on TNT’s YouTube page.
Meanwhile, TNT will air 18 games from the resumption of the season, including doubleheader (Tuesday) and tripleheader (Thursday), as well as tripleheader on August 8th.
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