“A Cat Litter Scientist”: Lance Armstrong Once Brought to Light Charles Barkley’s Insane Friendship Story that Sounds like a Sitcom Episode

Published 11/19/2022, 9:38 AM EST

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Lance Armstrong has been hosting the podcast ‘The Forward’ for quite a long time. This podcast has featured many popular celebrities across various fields of sports and glamour. Fans have heard some of the craziest moments of their favorite celebrities on this podcast. One such hilarious incident was told by the basketball legend, Charles Barkley.

Charles Barkley is one of the most renowned faces in basketball history. The 59-year-old legend has friends across industries. Although Charles is friends with multiple sports personalities, most people might not be aware of his friendship with the “Cat litter scientist.”

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Charles revealed how he became friends with the scientist

On the podcast, Lance started with a book mentioning Charles’s friendship with a cat litter scientist. The book was written by the scientist’s daughter. Charles told that he was in Sacramento for some event when he met Lin, the scientist. Charles casually started talking to him, and the two ended up having dinner together. “He is a scientist, a cat litter scientist,” Charles told Lance in 2019.

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Lin made an excellent impression on Charles, and they both swapped numbers. Charles told, “I didn’t think I am going to ever see him again“. But they became casual friends and met in different cities. 

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The two developed a wonderful friendship and used to have a conversation once a week or two. However, Lin passed away in 2018, and Charles’s visit to his funeral was the highlight of the entire story.

Lance Armstrong revealed Charles gave a eulogy in front of people he never met

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Considering Charles’s popularity, he was bound to get the eyes of the masses. He described, “as I walk in the room and everyone was like “ok, Charles Barkley is here.” The funny part was that he had never met anyone from his family before. “I don’t know what his wife looks like, I don’t know what his kids look like, “, he said. “Also, I was the only black person there, ” he joked.

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Lin had told everyone in his family about Charles and his friendship. Charles got to know about this from his daughter, Shirley. Although Charles didn’t know much about Lin, his brilliant acting skills convinced everyone about their friendship. He said, “everybody was like, you really know Lin and I was like yeah, we were great friends“. 

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Charles further spent some time with Lin’s family and got to know about his good deeds and sharp-mindedness. “I learned so much about him that day,” he added. He further went and gave a eulogy in front of an unknown crowd. Even ‘Though Sir Charles’ had a tough time going through that moment, he made his friend’s family feel special. And that’s the quality of great players.

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Written by:

Shivam Sharma

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Shivam Sharma is a US Sports author for EssentiallySports. With a Bachelor's degree in Journalism, he has previously worked as a writer and an anchor for Navbharat Today, penning down and explaining issues around sports, politics, and international relations. He is an admirer of Virat Kohli for the passion that he brings to the field.
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Edited by:

Abhishek Kumar