Please, Sir Charles, don’t leave

Charles Barkley is hinting he may leave broadcasting before his current four-year deal with Turner Sports expires. That simply cannot be allowed to happen.

Sir Charles, one of the most glib studio analysts anywhere, has too much to say to leave anytime soon. Consider his interview this week with SI.com, where he heaped praise on LeBron James, saying he could be better than Michael Jordan, blasted Jordan as an executive, gave the edge to Oklahoma City in the James Harden trade and offered advice to aspiring sideline reporters.

To the latter, Barkley said, "I don't like sideline reporters at halftime because you're asking coaches questions and they are pissed off most of the time. It's always easy to interview the guy who's winning, but if you're getting your butt kicked, it's a very awkward situation."

Barkley went on to say there's a form of discrimination in the television business.

"If you're an ugly woman, you have no chance of getting a TV job," he said. "They have hot, great looking women on TV now. But if you're an ugly woman, you ain't got no chance of getting a TV job."

See? That's why Barkley can't be allowed to bail out. You think Hubie Brown's going to give you that kind of insight?

■ BIG WINNER - In the wake of so many favorites covering last weekend in the NFL, a lot of bettors in Las Vegas were bragging about cashing big parlay card tickets.

Courtesy of Dave Tuley of the Daily Racing Form, he posted a photo on Twitter of a woman's 15-teamer at Red Rock Resort that netted her a cool $100,000 for $5.

Her winning picks - Nebraska (-2), San Diego State (+15), Broncos (-4), Packers (-11), Colts (+2), Ravens (-4), Texans (-10), Panthers (+3), Lions (-4), Bears (-3) Seahawks (-4), Buccaneers (+1), Steelers (+3), Falcons (-4) and the Saints on Monday night at minus-3.

As Cosmo Kramer once said on "Seinfeld," "Now that's some sweet action!"

■ CAREFUL WHO YOU CURSE - The NBA fined Los Angeles Lakers guard Steve Blake $25,000 for "directing inappropriate language toward a fan." In plain English, Blake cursed out the dude.

Turns out the fan who incurred Blake's wrath was the son of Steve Jackson, the chairman of shoe company LA Gear.

Jackson not only owns eight courtside seats at Staples Center, his Bel Air home has a replica of the arena where Lakers draft picks and free agents have been known to drop by and work out, and where visiting teams sometimes stage their pre-game morning shootarounds.

There was a reconciliation of sorts Tuesday between Blake and Jackson's son Lance, who started this whole thing by yelling at Blake to knock down open shots during Friday's game against the Clippers.

Yet, there's a lesson to be learned here. When a fan yells at a player, that player needs to be careful who he's retaliating against. The next time Blake wants to fire back at a fan, pick someone sitting in the balcony who probably owns a dry cleaning business.

Of course, the above rule does not apply to Charles Barkley. He can curse out anybody he wants to anytime.

COMPILED BY STEVE CARP
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL