Relive Charles Barkley's Top 5 Plays from the 1993 NBA Finals.Īlthough Barkley struggled with nagging injuries over the next two seasons, he maintained a high level of play.
In his magical first season with the Suns, he won the NBA MVP while leading Phoenix to the league’s best record of 62-20 and a berth in the 1993 NBA Finals, where the Suns lost to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in a memorable six-game series. Like the mythical bird for which the city is named, Barkley found new life in Phoenix. Nonetheless, Sixers ownership decided they’d had enough and accommodated Barkley’s desire for a trade, sending him to Phoenix for Jeff Hornacek, Tim Perry and Andrew Lang.
I just bring them to your attention,” Barkley once stated. They’re there long before I open my mouth. Still, Barkley was never shy of telling the world how he saw it, and was seemingly always in the eye of a storm of controversy, perhaps none moreso than in his Nike commercial when he defiantly stated “I am not a role model.” Though known as a tough guy, Barkley had a softer side, as evidenced by the time he offered room and board to Scott Brooks, a young rookie whom had just made the team. Foreshadowing his ability to turn negatives into positives, Barkley went on to develop a friendship with the girl and her family. The incidents were many, such as the infamous incident during a game against the New Jersey Nets when Barkley, intending to spit on a heckler, accidentally hit a young girl instead. Take a look back at Charles Barkley in the early years of his career.īarkley’s time in Philly brought headlines and headaches. After several disappointing early-round playoff defeats, the Sixers failed to make the postseason in 1991-92 and Barkley wanted out of the City of Brotherly Love. Unfazed, Barkley averaged 14.0 ppg and 8.6 rpg and earned a berth on the NBA All-Rookie Team.īarkley spent eight seasons in Philadelphia, but the team’s best showing during his tenure was in his first year, when the Sixers went 58-24 in the regular season and advanced all the way to the 1985 Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics in five games. Barkley joined a veteran-laden team with stars such as Julius Erving, Moses Malone and Maurice Cheeks - players who took Philadelphia to the 1983 NBA championship. He entered the 1984 NBA Draft as a junior and was taken by the 76ers with the fifth overall pick. He was the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year in 1984 but didn’t make the U.S. However, he also averaged 9.6 rebounds and thus was known for his heft and his hunger for caroms. In his three-year college career, Barkley averaged a not-so-spectacular 14.1 points per game. J for the first time and his early years with the Sixers. Who would have thought a chubby kid out of Auburn could accomplish so much?Ĭharles Barkley talks about meeting Dr. He’s a dominant rebounder, a dominant defensive player, a three-point shooter, a dribbler, a playmaker.” There is nobody who does what Barkley does. “He plays everything he plays basketball.
“Barkley is like Magic and Larry in that they don’t really play a position,” Bill Walton said in a SLAM magazine issue ranking NBA greats.
#CHARLES BARKLEY WIFE. FULL#
His awe-inspiring play demanded full respect and earned him a new nickname: Sir Charles. And on the defensive end, he would play the passing lane for a steal or block a center’s shot. In a half-court offense, he could fill it up from the paint or the perimeter. It was not rare to see the neophyte Barkley grab a rebound amongst a crowd, rumble downcourt with the ball and finish with a monster slam.
Undeterred, Barkley quickly buried that reputation when he began playing for the Philadelphia 76ers. Nicknamed the “Round Mound of Rebound”, many considered Barkley an undersized power forward with rebounding as his only discernible basketball skill.
#CHARLES BARKLEY WIFE. PROFESSIONAL#
Though Barkley brought vitality, attitude and a host of skills to professional basketball, he was viewed as an oddity coming out of college. Some never thought he’d ever get that far. Charles Barkley was known for rebounding and low-post dominance, but perhaps the only thing bigger than his game was his personality.
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