Days after LeBron put his naysayers on notice that he was taking mental notes this summer, Charles Barkley voiced his opinion on the matter.

And, of course, he did it in typical Barkley fashion:

“I heard about LeBron’s little tweet today that he’s remembering everybody who said anything bad about him. And he said ‘everybody.’ Well, I want him to make sure that he puts my name on that (list).

“I thought that his little one-hour special was a punk move. I thought them dancing around on the stage was a punk move, and I thought he should’ve stayed in Cleveland. Him joining Dwyane Wade’s team was very disappointing to me.”

Barkley continued:

“He’s got enough people kissing his ass with his family and all the people who work for him,” Barkley said. “We don’t have to tell him what he wants to hear all the time. That’s one of the reasons why … some of these young guys … my opinion is he should have stayed in Cleveland.

“That one-hour special, them jumping around on stage like punks, that wasn’t cool to me. From a basketball standpoint, I wish he had stayed in Cleveland, and if he takes that as criticism, so be it.

“He knows where I’ll be, I don’t run. I’m on TV every week, I’m easy to find.”

Boy, it sounds like somebody wants to stir up some drama.

It’s not odd to me that guys like Barkley and Reggie Miller – guys who played their entire careers with one organization and continued to lose at the hands of the best player in the history of the game - are going to disagree with LeBron’s decision. 

And Barkley has gone as far as to say that LeBron needs to win multiple titles:

“He’s got to win multiple championships to make that situation work, at least two.  (If not), his legacy is going to take a serious hit.”

After Barkley's comments, LeBron may hit us with another Twitter message. Stay tuned...

Barkley’s sentiment is also shared with the majority of the general public.  While there’s no doubt that James was under-supported in Cleveland, his stat line, leadership and overall dominance ascended his stature to become regarded as the NBA’s top player.  His move to Miami, along with two other stars, doesn’t diminish his skill level…but it does diminish his nightly responsibility to carry an otherwise middling franchise.

However, Sir Charles’ rant underlies the fact that he, Miller, Karl Malone, John Stockton and Patrick Ewing were all unable to hold up the Larry O’ Brien trophy at the conclusion of any particular season.  I’d like to interject that if any of them had won at least one title, it would have done absolutely nothing for their respective legacy.  They would each still be kindly, and honorably, regarded as good players in an era dominated by Michael Jordan. 

Would you think any more highly of them?

There’s no doubt that the bar has been raised for LeBron.  But the bar hasn’t just been raised for King James.  It has likewise been elevated for Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, as well as Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley.  LeBron’s legacy is now tied to Wade and Bosh, and there’s no doubt that what they achieve – or don’t achieve – will be heavily scrutinized.

One thing is for sure…

…I’m keeping my eye on King James’ tweets.

T Lamont is the owner, administrator and author of all content for Ball or Nuthin\'. Feel free to contact T Lamont with a question or comment at ballornuthin@gmail.com.  All created Ball or Nuthin' content is the sole property of T Lamont. Read more from this author