Dwyane Wade on LeBron James calling out Charles Barkley: 'It's about time'

Published Feb. 1, 2017 1:05 p.m. ET

Andrew Lynch

LeBron James is sick of Charles Barkley — and one of James' best friends is sticking up for the King.

After James voiced his frustration with Barkley's criticisms following the Cavaliers' lost to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday, telling ESPN's Dave McMenamin he would no longer allow the former NBA MVP to "disrespect" his legacy, Bulls guard Dwyane Wade applauded his former teammate for finally speaking out against critics.

Via Chicago Tribune:

"Thank God he finally said something. LeBron, a lot of guys take a lot of shots at him — for whatever reason. He just has kept his mouth closed and continued to focus on what he needs to. But it's about time he said something, man. Guys ride him, especially ex-players. When you have a history, when you can go and Google your history, you better be a little careful with what you say.

"Sometimes, when guys get a microphone in front of their face, they just talk and talk and talk and forget about their history. We all make that mistake, but especially that guy on TV. He acting like he just walks on water. And I like the fact that LeBron called him out and told him about himself a little bit. Humble yourself.

"LeBron is who he is. We all have flaws. But when your flaws are a little bit more, you should shut up. I'm glad LJ finally said something and stood up for himself from that standpoint. He said there's a new sheriff in town. So I'm excited to see what's next."

Some people might react negatively to Wade's comments — not because he supported LeBron but because Wade has his own drama to deal with these days in Chicago. In reality, though, he can only answer the questions he's asked, and someone asked Wade at practice Tuesday how he felt about LeBron's comments. He spoke up then moved on to the next topic.

Now, is Wade right? Is LeBron? Is Barkley? That's up to you to decide, but another of LeBron's good friends, Carmelo Anthony, weighed in on the kerfuffle as well on Tuesday (via ESPN.com):

"We all are human. Even though we are considered these kind of superheroes, super athletes, and nothing is supposed to affect us and we just go through life just taking it on the chin, it affects us in certain ways."