Most professional athletes simply prefer to be politically correct and speak in tired but harmless cliches. Charles Barkley has never been one of those types. From his playing days to his current gig as a basketball analyst, the basketball legend has never been afraid to speak his mind. Sometimes, his outspoken ways and biting wit have gotten him in trouble, but ultimately his honesty has earned him the respect of people inside and outside the sports world. Here is a sampling of some of Sir Charles’ most famous quotations:

♦ “My initial response was to sue her for defamation of character, but then I realized that I had no character.”

♦ “My family got all over me because they said Bush is only for the rich people. Then I reminded them, ‘Hey, I’m rich.’”

♦ “You know it’s going to hell when the best rapper out there is white and the best golfer is black.”

♦ “Poor people cannot rely on the government to come to help you in times of need. You have to get your education. Then nobody can control your destiny.”

♦ “I can be bought. If they paid me enough, I’d work for the Klan.”

♦ “We better not be doing the Bulls this year. Man, they suck! Bunch of high school kids with $70-million contracts. Damn! I hate my mother for having me too soon.”

♦ (After retiring from basketball) “I’m just what America needs – another unemployed black man.”

♦ (Asked If he graduated from Auburn) “No, but I have a couple people working for me who did.”

♦ “I remember sitting down with the Rockets and saying, ‘Yeah. I’m going to retire.’ They said, ‘Well, we’ll give you $9 million.’ And I said, ‘You got a pen on you?’”

♦ “If you go out with a girl and they say she has a great personality, she’s ugly. If they tell you a guy works hard, he can’t play a lick. Same thing.”

♦ “All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine.”

♦ “I’d never buy my girl a watch. She’s already got a clock over the stove.”

♦ (Asked by a judge whether he regrets tossing a man throw a first-floor window) “Yeah I regret we weren’t on a higher floor”

♦ “Just because you watch ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ doesn’t mean you can do the operation.”

♦ “LeBron is a great player and a great guy, but he’s a drama queen.”

♦ “I truly believe that building bridges, not building walls and not giving into fear, will make our communities better.”

♦ “I might go my whole life stealing money. I got paid to play basketball, which is a scam. I get paid to watch basketball, which is a scam.”

♦ “That’s one of the problems with this country: they put you in a box. You’re a Republican, you’re a Democrat, you’re conservative, you’re liberal. And that’s really unfair.”

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