"I was angry": Charles Barkley, now earning $20 million, reflects on his dad abandoning him in “60 Minutes” interview

Charles Barkley has become one of the most successful NBA legends after calling it quits on his playing career.

Right after retiring, he joined TNT's NBA broadcast team, mainly as a studio analyst for Inside the NBA.

Barkley helped grow the show to become arguably the best basketball studio show right now.

However, amid his success, Barkley, who is now earning about $20 million a year by just being a commentator, could not help but recall a time his father failed his family.

In an interview with 60 Minutes' Jon Wertheim, Charles Barkley said that he was mad that his dad abandoned his family:

"I was very angry, and I was even angrier because he kept saying he was going to send us money and he didn't do it."

He added:

"My mom and grandma were working their behinds off, and the thing that was really bad about it: I was standing by the mailbox like once every three or months, but they never came."

With no financial support, Barkley's grandmother, Johnny May, had to sell alcoholic drinks at their house just to make ends meet:

"People would come over Friday and Saturday and play cards. Everybody starts drinking. Once somebody loses their money, there's gonna be a fight, so my grandmother — she's a little old lady — is walking around with a six-shooter and she's keeping the peace."

When Barkley eventually made it to the NBA as part of the iconic 1984 draft, he wanted to use his career as a statement to his dad:

"I was playing to stick it to my dad... instead of just wanting to be great."

When Charles Barkley's basketball motivation changed

However, his mindset changed when he got suspended for an infamous spitting incident in 1991. He said:

"I am going to play basketball because I'm great at it and I love to play. I'm getting all the dirt off my shoulders... dad, bye!"

With a renewed goal, Charles Barkley eventually became a Most Valuable Player, two-time Olympic gold medalist and a host of arguably basketball's greatest studio show.