When Charles Barkley struck the unlikeliest of friendships: "For your dad to take the time to come to the funeral meant a great deal to me"

Charles Barkley used to be one of the most popular NBA players during his prime. Throughout his 16-year professional career, the forward met a lot of interesting people, but one person he met was very unusual, yet very special.

Charcey Glenn, Barkley's mother, passed away in June 2015. The funeral had a lot of guests, including one guest that no one but Barkley recognized. He wasn't a basketball player or a TV personality, yet he was very close to the former basketball star.

The man's name was Lin Wang and he was one of Barkley's dearest friends.

"For your dad to take the time to come to the funeral meant a great deal to me," Barkley said to Shirley Wang, Lin's daughter.

Wang met the basketball legend in California in 2014 and the two had a long and interesting friendship.

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Lin Wang was one of Charles Barkley's dearest friends

As a celebrity, Barkley has had a chance to meet thousands of interesting people. He earned a lot of fame and popularity during his professional basketball career and has also remained popular since retiring.

Back in 2014, the basketball legend was in Sacramento where he attended a charity event. He was approached by Lin Wang, who was also on a business trip and who wanted to take a picture with Barkley.

Charles Barkley met Lin Wang in 2014 in Sacramento (Image via Getty Images)

A simple photo request turned into a two-hour dinner and eventually into a special friendship. Lin Wang, who was Director of Research and Development at Kent Pet Group at the time, was very proud of his friendship with the former basketball player.

“I was just sitting at the bar,” Barkley told Shirley. “And me and your dad were the only two people in there. And we just sit down and started talking."

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"It turned into a two-hour dinner. And then we actually went back to the bar and just sit there and talked for another couple of hours. And the rest is history,” the basketball Hall of Famer added.

Barkley loved spending time with Wang and even brought him on the set of "Inside the NBA." This is where the chemist from Iowa met several other basketball legends, like Shaquille O'Neal and Kenny Smith.

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Barkley lost his friend in 2018

Just three years after losing his mother, Charles Barkley had to say goodbye to a dear friend of his. At the age of 51, Lin Wang was diagnosed with heart cancer, and this is the fight he ended up losing.

After two years of dealing with cancer, Wang passed away.

"I was so blessed to know him as a person," Barkley said during Lin Wang's funeral. "He really cared about other people."

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Barkley ended his eulogy by saying that the world is a less happy place without Lin. However, he also added that he was always going to have great memories of him.