At least according to Charles Barkley.

I’ve actually personally sworn off posting about Barkley and/or LeBron James in the remaining millenia, but I was so bemused by media reporting of Barkley’s recent comments on Dan Patrick’s radio show that I had to chime in.

(Smith at - where else? - a Cavs game)

Barkley last Wednesday said that James needed to “shut the hell up” when it came to his future NBA team destination in 2010. Of, course, I couldn’t care less about that. The fun part is what Barkley said about Stephen A. Smith right in the middle of his comment about James - and I suppose it illustrates just how far S.A.S. has fallen off the sports media map. Read more…

• THE 700 LEVEL hears Phillies slugger Chase Utley giving a reasonable response to all the boo birds at Yankee Stadium on Monday night.

• Meanwhile, REAL CLEAR SPORTS catches Rick Reilly complaining about too many white players participating in the Home Run Derby.

• Speaking of racist chatter, DEADSPIN discovers Reggie Jackson having the chutzpah to call an artist Jewish, just because the two were haggling over the price of a painting.

• On a related note, BUGS & CRANKS raises some interest in presenting their MLB All-Dick Team.

Read more…

• LARRY BROWN SPORTS flips through the channels, and finds FOX cameras catching the Cubs’ Kerry Wood flipping the bird in the bullpen.

Wood really shouldn’t be doing that - such hand gestures might land Kerry right back on the DL.

• Stephanie Stradley of AOL FANHOUSE floats along rumors of Cedric Benson joining up with the Houston Texans.

• DEADSPIN discovers that Kevin Love is well-versed in the Cheez Doodle aura of Stephen A. Smith heckling.

• WITH LEATHER turns green at the news that this year’s Olympic sailing competition is threatened by algae.

Read more…

Dan Le Batard interviewed ESPN NBA analyst Tim Legler on WAXY-AM in Miami this week (audio starts at 5:36), and asked him, “What one thing would you change that bothers you about the (sports) media?”

Legler’s response: “The thing that bothers me the most is what has become a very blurred line between a journalist and ex-players as analysts - people that actually played the game.”

(*Mystery*: A “writer” spouting “inaccurate” analysis who “isn’t qualified”?)

“That’s not to say that everybody that’s an analyst who was an ex-player is good at this job, because we both know there’s a lot of guys out there that probably shouldn’t be on TV or radio.“

“But more and more journalists (sportswriters) now cross over into doing real, hard analysis and trying to get into what’s going on on the court and what should go on on the court and a lot of times, I just don’t think a lot of (those) people are qualified to do that.“

Then Legs gets a smidge more specific. Read more…

• STEROID NATION has a look at ADHD drugs as they pertain to baseball.

• YOU BEEN BLINDED says Stephen A. Smith wants the draft rigged in favor of the Knicks. Like that would ever happen (cough: Patrick Ewing).

• DEUCE OF DAVENPORT breaks down the Bernard Hopkins beat down. Read more…