Charles Barkley, “The Round Mouth of Rebound” is at it again. This time he has directed his candid and controversial mode of expression towards the Golden State Warriors style of pill-pushing.
Before the Cleveland Cavaliers tipped off against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first half of a doubleheader on TNT on Thursday night, Barkley, who is a fan of traditional basketball and his era of ’80s and ’90s hooping, let it be known in a rather sexist and demeaning way that hes still not feeling Dub Nation’s jump-shooting stilo.
He flat out said that San Antonio is the best team in the West and he doesn’t think Golden State matches up well with the LA Clippers.
“Maybe I’m old school, but I’m never going to like that little girly basketball where you have to outscore people,” he said on the live broadcast. “I’m biased against girls basketball…I love [UConn women’s head coach] Geno Auriemma, one of my favorite people. I love women’s college basketball. But I don’t want it in the NBA.”
Earlier this year, at TNT and CBSs March Madness media event, Barkley expressed to me that he was surprised at Golden States success last season with a team of jump shooters and he picked Cleveland with LeBron James or San Antonio featuring Kawhi Leonard, to come out of the West. Mainly because they play defense and they rebound.
In the playoffs…at a certain time you will have to get stops on defense and get easy buckets (in the trenches) Barkley told The Shadow League. Im not sure Golden State can do that.
Barkley was right, a strong Cleveland hustle sidelined Golden States quest for back-to-back chips and ushered in the Kevin Durant Super Team, which is another aspect of todays NBA that he isn’t too fond of. Just like the one-and-done college player.
Barkley is always vocal about his stances and theres some validity to what he is saying. The way he put it might be questionable, but its what most old school basketball purists with outdated perceptions of the game and stubborn, non-progressive basketball philosophies are thinking.
So while Dub Nation and the politically correct might be cringing and seething today at Barkleys statements, some will undoubtedly pat him on the back for staying true to the integral aspects of basketball that are becoming lost art forms in todays increasingly one-dimensional game.
