Charles Barkley lobbed another verbal salvo on Wednesday in his war of words with theMiami Heat and their fans.
When asked if Miami is the worst professional sports town, Barkley, who reiterated his admiration of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, said: "Yeah they have the worst fans. No question. It's not even loud in there. You're at the game and you are like, 'Man this place isn't even loud.' At least when you go to Chicago, it's loud in there, it's crazy down in Dallas but it's not even loud in Miami."
When the Heat were playing the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference finals, Barkley said he liked James and Wade personally, but he called the Heat a "whiny bunch." He didn't back off that charge on Wednesday when he was a guest on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000.
"Listen, if the Miami Heat were playing the Washington Generals I would pick the Washington Generals," Barkley said with a chuckle. "It's something about that team that annoys me.
"They just a whiny bunch and I can't root for them."
Heat fans let Barkley know they weren't happy with his criticism. In fact, TNT moved its set for pregame shows during coverage of the conference finals from outside American Airlines Arena to inside because of negative interaction between Barkley and fans.
The NBA Finals between the Heat and Dallas Mavericks is being carried on ABC.
I thank Barkley for not only pointing out the obvious, but also for being possibly the one and only member of the media unafraid of bashing the Miami Heat. Literally, he's the only one who's been consistent in the aftermath of The Decision that's had the cojones to stand up to those punks time and time again. He's my favorite NBA analyst, and maybe even my favorite analyst on all of TV, for one simple reason: he's not afraid to speak his mind, and he tells it like it is.
Of course, it's no secret Miami is a terrible sports town. There were empty seats in that arena all season long for the Heat. The Marlins draw about as well as a Hingham baseball game. The Dolphins do alright fan wise, but they've never won a Super Bowl. And of course, the Florida Panthers add to the city's fan prestige by not qualifying for the post-season in 10 years, longest active drought in the NHL, as well as for ranking near last in attendance year after year after year.
Man I just hope the Dirk Show can win this thing. It will be almost as satisfying as if the Bruins win the Cup. Almost.
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| Yep, they turn out in droves in South Florida. |
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