Larry Bird ruffled a few feathers when he said the NBA needed more white superstars, but he didn't bother Charles Barkley.
"I've got no problem with that," the player-turned-analyst said Friday. "I've got nothing but love for Larry Bird."
The former Celtics superstar made his comments when an ESPN interviewer asked him about the small number of white stars in the league. Barkley defended Bird, now the president of the Indiana Pacers.
"Every time somebody says something about race, it's not always bad, and the politically correct police are getting out of hand," Barkley said. "Every time somebody says something about race, doesn't mean they're racist. I know Larry Bird's not racist."
Bird also said he considered it disrespectful when an opposing coach would have a white player guard him — which tickled Barkley, who played the early portion of his career with Philadelphia, Boston's longtime Atlantic Division rival.
"I'll tell you what was really funny was . . . we always thought it was an insult when they put (Bird) on one of us, because he was the worst defensive player ever," Barkley said.