Charles Barkley gets his money from the Trail Blazers

Tom Gatto

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Charles Barkley gets his money from the Trail Blazers image

Charles Barkley spoke, the Trail Blazers listened, and on Sunday night Barkley got paid.

The team heard about Sir Charles saying it still owed him money for a trip to Portland he took years ago to personally lobby for a trade. (Based on this 2015 Sports Illustrated story, the meeting happened in 1992, right before the 76ers traded Barkley to the Suns.)

MORE: Barkley talks playing drunk after trade to Lakers fell through 

Barkley gave out a number for this personal expense, too: $1,197. Not sure if he charged interest and/or factored in inflation.

Anyways, Chuck received his reimbursement after the NBA All-Star Game at Staples Center. Blazers guard Damian Lillard hand-delivered a check ("We pay our debts," Lillard said), which Shaquille O'Neal soon lifted.

If Barkley ever gets the check back from Shaq, it will wind up on a wall rather than in a bank.

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.