BARCELONA ’92 OLYMPICS / DAY 9 : Barkley Again Is Up to His Tricks

After three games of good behavior, Charles Barkley is back.

Barkley, criticized after elbowing an Angolan player during the U.S. basketball team’s opener, was fouled by Enrique Andreu during the second half of Sunday’s 122-81 victory over Spain. Andreu fell. Barkley walked over to him as if to help him up, stood above him, dropped the ball next to him and walked away. The crowd, which had whistled in derision when Barkley entered the game, whistled louder.

Barkley hugged Andreu after the game, making it a typical all-around performance.

“Well, Charles is Charles,” teammate Magic Johnson said. “Nothing you can do about it. He’s just going to make his statement, speak his mind, do what he wants to do.

“Of course, what he does rubs off on us. People look at him and think, ‘They’re all like that.’

“Nothing you can do but hope he doesn’t go overboard. The thing is, Charles is a good person if you know him.

“Well, they don’t. We know him. They don’t.”