Charles Barkley, who mocked San Antonio’s women, once declared Spurs’ Tim Duncan as ‘Future of NBA’

Charles Barkley is one of the greatest power forwards the NBA has ever seen. Sure, his 6ft 6″ height made it hard for him to play at the position, but Barkley found a way to dominate. Using his frame and athleticism, Chuck made a name for himself as one of the greatest rebounders the game has ever seen.

The Round Mound of Rebound retired from the NBA in 2000, and has been working with TNT since. Barkley is known for his brutal honesty and for speaking whatever comes to his mind. While it helps Chuck get views, it often gets him in trouble as well.

One of the biggest red flags was when Charles mocked the women in San Antonio.

These comments landed Chuck in deep water.

While Chuck may not like the women in San Antonio, he sure fell in love with their #1 Pick in the 1997 Draft.

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Charles Barkley was mesmerized after seeing Tim Duncan

Barkley is proudly one of the best PFs the game has ever seen. However, once he saw a 21-year-old Tim Duncan, Chuck felt like he saw the future.

Tim Duncan was drafted as the 1st pick in the 1997 Draft by the San Antonio Spurs. Before joining the NBA, Duncan played collegiate basketball for four years at Wake Forest University. At Wake, Duncan averaged 16.5 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks.

The biggest question for any player entering the NBA is whether their skills would translate to the league. In Tim Duncan’s case, they did. Playing the Houston Rockets in a preseason game, Duncan mightily impressed Charles Barkley. According to ‘Tim Duncan: Slam Duncan’ by Kevin Kernan, Chuck said,

“I have seen the future, and he wears No. 21.”

Chuck wasn’t wrong. Right in his rookie season, Duncan averaged 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 2.5 blocks. This earned him an All-Star selection and Rookie of the Year honors.

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How good was Tim Duncan’s career?

The Big Fundamental played for 19 seasons in the NBA, hanging up his boots in 2016. After a stellar rookie season, Duncan led the Spurs to the 1999 NBA Championship in his sophomore year. After that, Duncan won back-to-back MVPs in 2002 and 2003. He also led the Spurs to their second championship in 2003.

Duncan retired in 2016 as a 5x NBA Champion, 15x NBA All-Star, 15x All-NBA selections, and 15x All-NBA Defensive selections. Arguably one of the best to play at the PF position, the Big Fundamental had a stellar career, as called out correctly by the Chuckster.

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