It has been more than a while since Charles Barkley retired from the NBA. The 6’6″ power forward has worked as an NBA analyst for over two decades now.  In that time, he gained some weight when compared to his playing days. So, when talking about hanging out with NFL players back in the day, Barkley decided to show the mirror to these stars. 

Now there is no doubt that there is a difference in the body type between NBA and NFL players. Basketball players tend to be tall and pensive whereas football players are often huge and muscular.

Charles Barkley gave his take on hanging out with NFL players

Charles Barkley sat down with Ernie Johnson and Bomani Jones on the ‘Steam Room’ podcast. That is when Barkley shared his stories of hanging out with NFL stars when he was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers. He spoke about how they’re usually short muscular players, who aren’t that tall. 

Barkley narrated the story of the first time he met an NFL player. He said, “I remember the first time I met Reggie White, one of the greatest people I’ve ever met. I was saying to myself, ‘This little chubby dude the best defensive player in the world?’”

Read More – “I Left College for $75000”: NBA Legend Charles Barkley, Who Deliberately Gained Weight Before the Draft, Was Startled After Being Selected by the 76ers

Co-host Bomani Jones was taken aback as he thought that Barkley did say that to someone. The 76ers legend cleared the air and mentioned that he was thinking that. 

Barkley continued saying, “Because when I meet football players, they’re all little dudes. I’ve never met really big football….They’re thick but they’re not tall. I haven’t met very few football players, I’ve met were tall. They’re all muscular and thick.”

The 11-time All-Star finished his comments with, “I’m used to be, all the guys I know are a minimum of 6’2″, 6’3″, 6’5″, 6’6″. When you meet a football player, most of them are less than six feet tall.”

The 76ers legend and his take on NFL players

Charles Barkley mentioned how he has never been around tall NFL players, to which Ernie mentioned that he may have been hanging out with the wrong NFL players. That is when Barkley said, “Hey, I’ve been around some studs but none of them are never really tall.”

Watch This Story – Charles Barkley, Steve Kerr, and other players who Michael Jordan has ticked off

The 1993 MVP went on his own weight loss journey after gaining weight over the years. He even mentioned his whole weight loss regime while on the show with Jimmy Kimmel once. Notably, he gained a lot of weight after his hip surgery in 2016.

The 76ers legend once weighed over 300 pounds during his playing days. Since then, Barkley went on a fasting diet and has been able to shed a lot of weight since then.