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Two-time NBA champion Kevin Durant has a lot of respect for Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, but don’t expect the two to be sitting across the table from each other anytime soon.
Barkley and Durant have a beef going back a few years, with Barkley criticizing the path Durant took toward winning two championships with the Golden State Warriors.
Former player Charles Barkley cheers on the Auburn Tigers at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama., on March 4, 2023. (Michael Chang/Getty Images)
Durant has fired back through social media and the press, saying he doesn’t require Barkley’s approval.
On Wednesday after practice, Durant was asked what he would say to Barkley if he had an opportunity to sit down with him.
Durant made it clear that wasn’t an option.
"I probably wouldn’t sit down with Charles, to be honest," Durant told reporters with a smile.
While Durant apparently doesn’t have any desire for a face-to-face meeting, the 13-time All-Star did express his respect for what Barkley has done for the game of basketball.
Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns dribbles during the game against the Denver Nuggets at the Ball Arena in Denver on April 6, 2023. (Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
"I respect everything Charles brought to the game of basketball. And I try to emulate all the greats in some form or fashion," he said. "I’d never take away what he means to the game of ball. So, I think we’re all cut from the same cloth when you’ve been through this journey."
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Durant is preparing for his first playoff run with the Suns, having been acquired by Phoenix from the Brooklyn Nets at the NBA’s trade deadline for Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and four unprotected future draft picks.
The Suns will be facing the Los Angeles Clippers, featuring Durant's former teammate Russell Westbrook, in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The two have been rumored to share their own beef after Durant left Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2016.
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Russell Westbrook was drafted by the Oklahoma City Thunder after the team relocated from Seattle. Durant and Westbrook made up an all-star duo that consistently made it to the playoffs and even appeared in one NBA Finals. (Chris Elise/Getty Images)
"It will be normal for me," Westbrook said about what it will be like to face his former Thunder teammate. "I think people still think like there's some beef or something. There's no beef of any [kind], so I think that's the good narrative for media, for people to talk about."
"But there's no beef," he continued. "I got nothing but respect for him and things he's done with his career and having to see him back from injury. There's no beef at all. But he knows I'm going to compete, and I know he's going to compete, and that's all it is."
Fox News’ Chantz Martin contributed to this report.