Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley have a relationship that goes back decades, starting from when the pair were both drafted into the NBA in 1984.Barkley was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers while Jordan was drafted by the Chicago Bulls.Jordan and Barkley were great friends and locked horns in the 1993 NBA FinalsGettyThe pair were teammates at the 1992 Olympics and starred in the famous ‘Dream Team’ who stormed to a gold medal in Barcelona, Spain.A year later, Jordan and Barkley battled for a championship when the Bulls overcame the Suns 4-2 in the 1993 NBA Finals.It was the conclusion of a season where Barkley earned his first and only MVP award, something that irked His Airness given he was at the peak of his powers and a back-to-back champion.Jordan went on to average 41 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists in six games in the ’93 Finals to capture his first three-peat. While Barkley impressed, averaging 27.3 points, 13 rebounds and 5.5 assists, he later admitted that Finals loss was one of the only times he cried during his career.To this day he remains one of the greatest players in NBA history to never win a title.Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan’s relationship souredAfter retirement, the two went on to share what seemed like a strong friendship, as they would often be seen on the golf course together.However, their multi-decade relationship turned sour when Barkley’s new job as a basketball analyst for TNT saw him make remarks that Jordan didn’t like.In 2012, Barkley criticized Jordan’s record as the owner of the Charlotte Hornets.The six-time NBA champion owned the franchise for 13 years, but sold his majority stake in 2023 to Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall.“I think the biggest problem has been I don’t know if [Jordan] has hired enough people around him who he will listen to,” Barkley said on ESPN Chicago’s Waddle & Silvy in 2012. They were both drafted in 1984 and enjoyed many a battle on the hardwoodGettyThey were part of the iconic 1992 Olympic Dream Team alongside fellow NBA icon Magic JohnsonGetty“One thing about being famous is the people around you, you pay all their bills so they very rarely disagree with you because they want you to pick up the check. They want to fly around on your private jet so they never disagree with you. I don’t think Michael has hired enough people around him who will disagree.”“I love Michael, but he just has not done a good job,” Barkley added on that radio appearance. “Even though he is one of my great friends, I can’t get on here and tell you he’s done a great job. He has not done a great job, plain and simple.”Those comments provoked an immediate reaction from Jordan, as Barkley claimed he called him straight after the interview.“He went ballistic,” Barkley recalled on Showtime’s ‘All the Smoke.’“He called me and that’s the last thing I heard was, ‘Mother****** f*** you, you’re supposed to be my boy.’ I said, ‘Man, I gotta do my job.’ We haven’t spoken since that night.”The relationship remained distant for years, that is, until now.The NBA legend’s love of golf is well known and they often played a round togetherGettySir Charles and MJ back on speaking terms after recent conversationDuring a SiriusXM appearance on Mad Dog Unleashed with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on Friday, Barkley said that he’s speaking with Jordan again, and they will play golf when the NBA season ends.“We had a conversation,” Barkley said. “We’re going to get together and play golf as soon as basketball is over.”“Wow! Charles, that’s a big story!” Russo responded. “Because he was mad at you!”“Hey, we’re not like Prince William and Prince Harry,” Barkley explained. “We always had a lot of love for each other. But we talked, actually, in the last probably 72 hours. We decided to get together and play golf as soon as basketball is over.”View Tweet: https://twitter.com/MadDogUnleashed?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwNBA's GreatestGreatest NBA players in the world right now – from Luka Doncic to Spurs phenom Victor WembanyamaBest players in NBA history to never win a championship – James Harden and Carmelo Anthony to Allen Iverson and Karl Malone10 richest owners in the NBA – family empires, media moguls and investment gurusMichael Jordan’s top 10 scoring games – counting down MJ’s most extraordinary totalsThese days, Barkley still works in sports media as an Inside the NBA analyst with ESPN/TNT Sports.Jordan, meanwhile, is still a minority owner for the Hornets, who were recently eliminated from playoff contention after a 121-90 defeat to the Orlando Magic in the NBA Play-In Tournament.MJ has also appeared as special contributor for the NBA on NBC throughout the season, participating in a single interview with Mike Tirico that NBC turned into numerous segments throughout the 2025-26 season, much to the annoyance of fans who expected more from his role when it was first announced.Stay up to date with the latest from the NBA across all platforms – follow our dedicated talkSPORT USA Facebook page and subscribe to our talkSPORT USA YouTube channel for all the offseason news, interviews and more.