'This clearly takes him out of the conversation' - Charles Barkley once said going to Miami disqualified LeBron James from GOAT status

When LeBron James went to the Miami Heat in 2010, members of the 1992 Dream Team criticized him.

Michael Jordan said he would've never called Bird and Magic and asked them to join forces. Magic said that his mindset since college has been trying to figure out how to beat Bird, not join him. Charles Barkley, meanwhile, said that LeBron unconsciously disqualified himself from the GOAT debate by joining forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

"He'll never be Jordan," Barkley said. "This clearly takes him out of the conversation. He can win as much as he wants to."

Winning a championship as 'The Man'

It's interesting why Barkley was already talking about the GOAT conversation in 2010. At that time, LeBron had yet to win a single championship. Perhaps he bought into James' 'Not one, not two, not three' statement, which was foolish in the first place.

But perhaps he was saying that it's okay to jump to another team as long as you are still the main man on that new squad. When Chuck couldn't win in Philly, he also asked to leave, but when he was traded to the Suns, Phoenix gave up its top scorer from the previous season, Jeff Hornacek, to acquire him.

"There would have been something honorable about staying in Cleveland and trying to win it as 'The Man'... LeBron, if he would've won in Cleveland, and if he could've got a championship there, it would have been over the top for his legacy, just one in Cleveland. No matter how many he wins in Miami, it clearly is Dwyane Wade's team."

Barkley also criticized KD for his Golden State rings

Long after LeBron's Miami stint, Barkley also criticized Kevin Durant for leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder to join the Golden State Warriors in 2016. Chuck said KD had no right to brag about being a champion because he was a mere 'bus rider' on that team.

"I don't want to bad mouth the dude," Chuck said. "So you guys talk all about that championship stuff. I tried to tell y'all. All these bus riders, they don't mean nothing to me. If you ain't driving the bus, don't walk around talking about you're a champion. If you're riding the bus, I don't want to hear it. When you're the bus driver, and you got all that pressure that you have to play well, or you're going to get the blame, that's a different animal."

Looking back, however, Durant was more than just a bus rider on that Golden State team. He was the NBA Finals MVP in both championship seasons.

As for LeBron, he will never be Michael Jordan, just as Jordan will never be him. But James was the man on that Miami team, too, just like KD was in Golden State and Chuck was in Phoenix. The only difference is that Bron and KD had better teams, and they won rings. Chuck retired with none.