“If Anybody Said Anything to My Teammates, They’re Gonna Go Through Me”: When Michael Jordan Failed to Intimidate Charles Barkley During 1993 NBA Finals

One thing that Michael Jordan was perhaps best known for was being intimidating to play against. Opponents would be scared to go up against Jordan and this often played into the hands of ‘His Airness’. But then during the 1993 NBA Finals, Jordan failed to intimidate Charles Barkley, and he even sent out a warning to Jordan against going up against his teammates.

It was the 1992-93 season. Jordan and the Bulls were on the verge of a three-peat but they had a formidable opponent in front of them. It was Charles Barkley and the Phoenix Suns. The Suns had the best record in the league, and they were led by Chuck. He had his best season to date, and he was subsequently named the league’s MVP.

And Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were facing their toughest test in the Finals yet.

Charles Barkley warned Michael Jordan against going up against his teammates

Jordan and Barkley were friends off the court and they even played on the ‘Dream Team’ together. They used to play golf as well and go to clubs together. But during the Finals, they were opponents, and they wanted to win the title more than anything.

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Barkley sent a strong message to Jordan. He said, ” They think they are playing against the old Phoenix Suns, who let people bully them around and intimidate them. We’re not like that anymore and if anybody said anything to my teammates, they’re gonna have to go through me.”

“Michael is a master at intimidation verbally. He probably can intimidate some people, he can’t intimidate Danny Ainge,”?Barkley added.

This series was arguably the toughest NBA Finals that Jordan faced until that point. The series went to six games, and every game was very close. It ended on an iconic shot from John Paxson, who hit a three to win the championship for the Bulls.

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And Michael Jordan was spectacular in the series. He averaged a mammoth 41 PPG, and he ended up winning his third straight Finals MVP trophy. This would go on to become the only Finals appearance of Charles Barkley’s career. Chuck and the Phoenix Suns may not have been intimidated by Jordan, but they were ultimately beaten by him.