For Charles Barkley, an analyst’s “job on television is to be fair and honest.” Yet, he believes that’s the one thing ESPN lacks, especially when it comes to MVP discussions. Barkley’s frustration flared in 2023, during the MVP race, where he felt Nikola Jokic didn’t get his well-deserved MVP, and he declared them as “fools and jacka-ses”. Moreover, Sir Charles also feels he is one MVP honor short because of this favoritism.

Chuck recently took his grievances to the Dan Patrick Show, where he again called out ESPN and Fox. “It’s funny you said it,” he began, “because I’m watching all these idiots and fools and jacka-ses on ESPN.” Each year, he argued, broadcasters push their own narratives during MVP voting. While Barkley acknowledges players like LeBron James are incredible talents, he’s adamant that the MVP should go to “the guy having the best season,” not necessarily “the best player.”

The 2023 MVP vote brought Barkley’s frustrations to a boiling point. As he put it, “Them clowns and fools on other networks” continually disregard his standards for the MVP title. Following the vote, fans buzzed with curiosity, questioning which analyst left Jokic off their MVP ballot entirely, as Joel Embiid claimed the award. When the voting ballots were finally revealed, it was none other than ESPN’s Mark Jackson.

Jackson filled his ballot with names like Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Donovan Mitchell. But no Jokic. Charles Barkley, baffled, didn’t mince words: “There’s one person—I don’t even know this fool’s name—didn’t even have [Jokic] in the top five. People like that shouldn’t get a vote … He’s a damn idiot.”

For Barkley, this kind of biased voting only underscores what he sees as “silly favoritism.” And Sir Charles was also convinced this same bias cost him his own MVP back in 1990.

Charles Barkley wants the vote to be fair and honest

In the chat with Dan Patrick, Patrick confessed he didn’t vote for Barkley for MVP in 1993, putting him second instead. Chuck took it well but reflected on the 1988 MVP, when he lost to Magic Johnson in what he remembers as a close vote (Barkley was probably talking about the 1990 MVP when Magic Johnson won, as in 1988, it was Michael Jordan). “I knew it was going to come down to the wire,” he recalled, still confident in his case as Philly’s standout that year.

Interestingly, Barkley got more first-place votes that year than the winner. What irks Barkley most is the lack of accountability in voting. “I don’t mind losing,” he admitted, “but y’all… I’m at least second, worst case scenario third.” He insisted, “Our job on television is to be fair and honest,” calling for more integrity in the MVP process.

In the 2023 MVP debate, Kendrick Perkins also stirred the pot on First Take by pointing out a supposed trend among MVP winners like Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, and Nikola Jokic. All three, he noted, were White players, and Perkins urged viewers to “think about it,” suggesting double standards in award criteria. “When it comes down to moving the goalposts… what song are we actually dancing to right now?”

But Barkley didn’t let that go unchecked. Speaking on Colorado’s 92.5 Altitude Sports Radio, he fired back at Perkins, calling the argument “asinine and silly.” Barkley wasn’t finished, adding, “Pick one of the words, whatever one you want.”

To him, these annual MVP debates are downright “silly,” rooted in narratives rather than basketball. Barkley clarified that MVP doesn’t automatically go to the “best player”—sometimes it’s about the best season.