Snubbed from Varsity team as sophomore in high school, 5'10 220-pound Charles Barkley 'jumped' his way into selection as junior

Charles Barkley had quite the career. He became known as the “Round Mound of Rebound” and won MVP of the league in 1993. However, Barkley was not always a formidable force on the floor. He started with very humble beginnings and was much smaller.

An article from the Chicago Tribune published in 1987 reveals some details of Barkley’s basketball beginnings. Before he became the 6-foot-6 NBA star, Barkley was 5-foot-10 and struggling to make his varsity high school team.

Much like his NBA counterpart Michael Jordan, Barkley was cut from his varsity basketball team. He was a sophomore and was cut from varsity. The rejection inspired Barkley to go into a workout rage and newfound determination.

Barkley was a bit pudgy at 220 lbs, but was motivated to change. He “jumped” his way into being a better player.

Barkley’s coach said he was too short to make varsity next year. So the future Hall of Famer decided to increase his leap to make up for the size difference.

''We had a chain-link fence about 5 feet high,'' said Charles Barkley`s grandmother, Johnnie Edwards to the Tribune, ''and he'd jump from one side to the other--I mean flat-footed. And he'd do it over and over again, maybe 15 or 20 times. Then he'd rest and do it again. He did that just about every day. I think that jumping had a lot to do with him growing that summer.''

Barkley got a biological boost as well. He grew to 6-foot-2 by the next season. He made varsity and led the team to the state championship final.

It would not be the first time he slimmed down to improve his game. Barkley played at around 25 lbs when he was the centerpiece of the Philadelphia 76ers. He constantly recounts in interviews how his Sixers teammate Moses Malone pushed him to workout more.

The Round Mound of Rebound remembers how his game improved as he shed off the college weight from his days at Auburn. Barkley increased his ppg average from 14.0 in his rookie season to 28.3 by his fourth year in Philly.

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Is Charles Barkley coming back to Inside the NBA?

In 2022, Charles Barkley signed a new deal with TNT, now owned by WarnerBros Discovery, to stay on “Inside the NBA” for the next decade. The deal was worth approximatley $200 million over 10 years.

The deal is an extension on his current deal with TNT, which was set to expire in 2025. It is reported that he was making $10 million per year on his old deal.

Barkley, of course, could retire before working out the entire contract. He will be back next season though.