Lovable Barkley ready to make you uncomfortable

If you’re a sports fan, it should almost be a requirement for you to love Charles Barkley. Aside from his greatness during his playing days in the NBA, Barkley is a cut-up, a character, he’s like the uncle that makes you laugh even though you sometimes roll your eyes.

And while you may not agree with his opinions on basketball or politics or his decisions on how to manage his money, Sir Charles is still there cracking a joke, smiling wide and making you feel comfortable.

Until now.

You see, it is not that Chuck is heading for a downward spiral or anything; he’s just going to be showcasing two pretty uncomfortable events in his life to the national viewing public: a colonoscopy and the attempted fixing of his golf swing.

To get a, well, “deeper” look at Barkley, be sure to tune in to the “Stand Up to Cancer” special being aired Sept. 5 simultaneously by NBC, CBS and ABC. Cameras will follow Barkley through his home state of Alabama while he prepares and completes the procedure that screens for prostate and other cancers. Barkley joked that the show’s producers probably wanted a celebrity with the biggest ass.

Then, if you weren’t shifting uncomfortably in your seat already, make sure your cable company or satellite provider carries the Golf Channel so you can watch Barkley’s newest unnamed reality series. The goal? “Fix Charles Barkley’s swing,” Sir Charles says.

Barkley, as well as the rest of the golf-viewing public, is embarrassed by his “turrible” swing and thinks Tiger Woods' swing coach, Hank Haney, can do some good.

“I was telling Hank that when I’m standing over the ball, I’m (expletive deleted) terrified. I have no idea what’s going to happen. He told me he used to have the yips, but not as bad as me. That’s what makes me think he can fix what’s wrong.’’

You’re not the only one whose “turrified,” Chucky. I wish you the best of luck on both because, well, you need it.

Misses of the Week

Every week the sports media reacts to certain stories that they should leave alone and makes poor decisions that aren't spotlighted enough. From time to time I will provide some "Misses of the Week" that I either failed to cover previously or did not necessarily constitute a full column. This week...

Barkley back to gambling: After being embarrassed during the NBA Playoffs when a casino made it public that Charles Barkley owed them $40,000, he swore he would quit gambling for at least "a year or two." While that is laughable in itself (imagine an alcoholic saying he'd quit drinking for two years), what is even more crazy is how the media is jumping all over him for accepting an invitation to play in a charity poker game. Sure, it is not the best way to stay away from a casino, but gambling implies risking your own money; Chuck is playing for charity. Give the man a little slack.

NBC, Notre Dame sign new deal: Five more years?! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE watching football and all sports on NBC. I also hate that they've lost MLB and NBA coverage over the past decade to crappy FOX and ABC respectivley. The reason this deal bothers me is two fold. First, signing Notre Dame to their own television deal keeps them independent from a conference. We all know it is time for them to join the Big 10 and allow them to be a REAL conference with a championship game. Second, well let's be honest, Notre Dame sucks.

NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said the network doesn't look at year-to-year results when it comes to Notre Dame, calling the football program a premier brand that defines the network as much as the Olympics, the NFL and the U.S. Open golf championship. Really?! Maybe he should. Notre Dame is NOT what it once was and does not deserve this type of treatment, even if Tony Kornheiser continues to call them the "university of football in America."