“It just sucks” Charles Barkley issued a sobering warning to young NBA players, and it comes in the wake of Brandon Clarke’s sudden death at just 29

The NBA has been recently shocked by the news of the sudden death of Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke. But his loss has seemingly sparked worries in the NBA section. Now, analysts like Charles Barkley are coming out to warn youngsters to stay away from drugs after the sudden demise of Clarke. His death is being investigated as the result of a sudden overdose of drugs.

According to the Daily Mail, Charles Barkley has come out advising everyone, which of course includes other athletes as well, to get away from drugs if they want to avoid unprecedented deterioration of health as well as career. Charles Brkley, in a recent program, confirmed that he is deeply affected by this topic of drug overdose, as his brother suffered from cocaine addiction before dying of a heart attack. He asked the boys to stay away from these and even accepted that this is not easy.

Barkley, talking about the alleged drug-related death of Clarke, stated, “I’m very sensitive on the drug situation. You guys got to stay away from that stuff. And I know that’s easier said than done. ‘It ain’t a matter “if,” it’s just a matter “when.” If you out there experimenting with drugs, the story is going to end badly. It ain’t just about you, man.” Barkley added, “You got a family out there, and you know, I don’t know the situation. He got a mom and dad, a brother and a sister, but man, it’s a terrible loss for him and his family. It just sucks. It was a tough day for the NBA”.

Clarke’s death is not the only recent loss for the NBA

Clarke’s death is a huge loss, but this is not the only loss, as the NBA veteran Jason Collins has also passed away. Collins was the first player to openly accept him being gay. In the recent show, Anchor Ernie Johnson declared that his decision to accept him as a ‘courageous move,’ which Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Barkley agreed on. Barkley, talking about Collins, said that whatever prejudice he faced while he played in the NBA was unjustifiable, as society is homophobic.

Barkley stated, “You say 13 years ago,  In fairness now, if another guy done did it, it would still be a big deal because we live in a homophobic society,’ Barkley added. ‘And that’s unfortunate.’ First of all, anybody who think we ain’t got a bunch of gay players in all sports, they’re just stupid,’ Barkley added. ‘But there is such animosity toward the gay community, and that’s what’s really unfortunate.”

NBA aside, we are also hearing about many athletes leaving us so soon. Recently, a bright college swimmer, Keegan McKenney from Queens University of Charlotte, also lost his life hours after his graduation on Mother’s Day. He was just 22 years old and was involved in a car crash with other passengers. Everyone else survived, but Keegan was later pronounced dead in the hospital.

Coming back to Clarke’s death, it has not yet been confirmed whether it was actually caused by a drug overdose. Barkley still insists that everyone, including NBA athletes, should stop this kind of consumption. Barkley declared that taking drugs is a selfish decision. Clarke’s death has been a severe shock to the entire NBA, and further investigations will determine the cause of his sudden demise.