NBA legend Charles Barkley has opened up about his gambling habits, revealing that he regularly plays blackjack with stakes as high as $25,000 per hand and prefers to play alongside friends rather than strangers.
Barkley explained that his friends often ask for his advice before making decisions at the blackjack table, particularly when their actions could affect the outcome of his own hand.
“I only play with my friends, because they all ask me, ‘Do you want me to take this hit?’”
The former NBA superstar described how the difference in betting amounts can make those decisions particularly important to him.
While Barkley might have $25,000 at stake, the person sitting next to him could be risking considerably less.
“I’m playing $25,000 a hand. He’s playing for $200. I says, ‘Take it.’ And then if he wins and I lose, I’m like, ‘Okay. He asked me.’”
Barkley said he prefers this arrangement because his friends consult him before making certain moves, even though their decisions do not necessarily produce the results he wants.
He also recalled frustrating experiences playing alongside strangers who made decisions he disagreed with and then celebrated their own success without considering the other players at the table.
“There’s nothing worse than playing with a f*cking idiot. Back in the day, I used to play with an idiot, and they take a hit and win, and they go crazy, and they f*ck the rest of the table.”
Although another player’s decision does not necessarily reduce everyone else’s chances of winning, Barkley made it clear that he finds those situations particularly irritating when large amounts of money are involved.
“And you can’t beat the f*ck out of them because you want to. That’s why I don’t play with random strangers.”
