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The Warriors and LeBron have found some middle ground

By Carlos Murillo

Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) shakes hands with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the fourth quarter of game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Warriors won 105-97. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) shakes hands with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the fourth quarter of game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Warriors won 105-97. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Golden State Warriors and LeBron James have found themselves a common enemy amidst their rivalry in TNT analyst Charles Barkley.

They say that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. While the Golden State Warriors and LeBron James may not be friends, they have developed a common enemy. It’s the two NBA Finalists versus Charles Barkley.

The Round Mound of Rebound has had it out for Golden State since Baron Davis was leading the way. He hated the way they played. He always pointed out their lack of size and rarely gave them credit, even when the 2007 Warriors defeated the 67 win Dallas Mavericks in the opening round of the playoffs.

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Since then, he’s made it his life’s mission to discredit Golden State. He applies lazy antiquated analysis to modern day basketball. Because he doesn’t understand how Stephen Curry does it, he tries to bash it.

We’ve all heard how he rips into the Warriors, even after they’ve proved themselves time and time again. “They too small, Ernie” he’ll shout on Thursday nights. He’ll spew the same nonsense about how jump shooting teams can’t win even though you can’t win without shooting.

LeBron James, who has directly opposed Golden State for the third year in a row now, has also been one of Barkley’s favorite punching bags. He’s criticized everything there is about the superstar. He’s attacked his physical and mental abilities.

Brian Windhorst laid out some of the things that have been bothering James, but they aren’t hard to find. The NBA star is either explicit or leaves a lot of hints for the rest of us to put together what he’s talking about. He’s upset at the results of the election, he’s disappointed in his shoe sales, and he’s frustrated at his team.

Barkley called James out for turning to the media to insult his teammates and General Manager. He was right in doing so, but James’ frustration forced him to fire back. He attacked the NBA Hall of Famer’s off court life, citing several bad situations.

It might have been unfair for James to say some of the things he said, but, on one level, it makes sense. He feels like Barkley’s rhetoric is hurting his legacy. So, in that sense, James and the Warriors can come together.

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Media controls narratives and narratives drive how we remember NBA players. Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson will be considered better players than James and Curry because of the narratives that surround them. Empirical evidence gets thrown out the window.

Barkley’s ignorance is costing players like James and Curry valuable narrative opportunities. By refusing to give them credit and using all their energy to put them down, he’s hurting them in the long run.

James and the Warriors are not on the same side and they never will be. They’re even combatting Barkley differently. But they can at least rally together behind their dislike of the clueless analyst who is trying to hurt today’s game instead of promote it.

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