Charles Barkley Explains Why Coaches Yelling at Superstars is Important

Charles Barkley says coaching starts with holding stars accountable.

Charles Barkley Explains Why Coaches Yelling at Superstars is Important

Charles Barkley (Image credits - Firstsportz)

In Short
  • Charles Barkley defends the importance of coaches yelling at star players for accountability.
  • He cites Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley as examples of successful coaches who held their stars accountable.
  • Barkley believes modern players are too soft and emphasizes the need for tough coaching methods.

Former NBA star Charles Barkley never hesitates to express his opinions, whether they are controversial or not. Considering he is not on social media, Barkley is often left unbothered when he is in the spotlight for his choice of words or controversial opinions.

The former player and Inside the NBA panelist pushed back against the idea that criticism equals bad coaching. 

Your job as a coach is to get the best out of your players. And these guys think criticism is bad coaching. That’s part of being a coach. One of the reasons Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley are on Mount Rushmore, like he said, you ask any of the Spurs, he yelled at Tim Duncan. He yelled at David Robinson, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginóbili. And you know the reason you have to do that? Because if you don’t yell at your stars, you can’t yell at the mediocre players. And that’s the power of coaching.

Charles Barkley on a recent broadcast at March Madness

The Chuckster has been covering March Madness on TNT over the last month. Charles Barkley is often referred to as an “old-head” and is known to be old school. Hence, he is often seen complaining and having issues with the current generation.

Known for his unfiltered opinions, Barkley called out his present employers, ESPN, over their poor scheduling of the Inside the NBA show earlier this year. Recently, he landed himself in a bit of a spot when he encouraged today’s parents to spank their kids to discipline them.

The former MVP came out in support of Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo and his strict coaching methods. Izzo’s methods were questioned by some media commentators, fans, and modern-day parents. Barkley has often been heard calling the younger generations too soft, especially in the NBA. He believes coaching is about accountability, and that starts with how you treat your best players.

Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley’s track record back Charles Barkley’s argument

The likes of Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley are widely regarded as two of the greatest coaches of all time and have cemented themselves in the NBA history books as head coaches.

As Charles Barkley mentioned, the two coaching icons held their star players accountable. They had the ability to get the best out of their stars and were known for their man-management skills.

Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley
Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley (Image credits – Sports Illustrated)

Riley is one of the most successful figures in the NBA. Known for his strict methods, he has won five NBA championships as a head coach, four with the Los Angeles Lakers during their Showtime era in the 1980s and one with the Heat in 2006.

Meanwhile, Popovich has five championships as a head coach. He coached the San Antonio Spurs for nearly 30 years. He was a key figure in the sustained success of the Spurs in the 1990s, the 2000s, and most of the 2010s. Popovic and Riley are two of only five coaches in NBA history to have won five titles. 

Dan Hurley misses out on Charles Barkley’s Mount Rushmore

UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley has been successful during his time in Connecticut. He led UConn to back-to-back NCAA Division I national championships and led the Huskies to another title game appearance in 2026.

Prior to the NCAA final, Charles Barkley said a win for UConn would cement the Huskies’ coach in history.

Well, I think tonight is really, really significant also, for two reasons. Number one, if UConn wins, Danny Hurley is going to be on the Mount Rushmore.

Charles Barkley on TNT Sports

Unfortunately for Hurley and UConn, they lost 69-63 to the Michigan Wolverines in the championship match. It was Hurley’s third final in four seasons. However, Michigan showed no signs of slowing and were rightfully crowned as the champions.

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