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Charles Barkley Once Snubbed Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant in Favor of James Harden as the Best 1-on-1 Player

Arun Sharma
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Charles Barkley once announced that James Harden was the best 1-on-1 player he's ever seen, snubbing Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan

Charles Barkley had a great playing career, media-wise, he’s been as right as a broken clock. Only Twice a year, instead of a day. 

Charles Barkley, along with the “Motley Crew” of NBA on TNT, has entertained viewers with various quips over the years. Whether it is about Kenny’s dog, or Shaquille O’Neal trying to beat up Chuck, things have always been entertaining.

But nothing may come close to Barkley trying to force James Harden into the best 1-on-1 player list. Harden is great, no question, but over Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan? Two players who’ve defined their eras as the best 1-on-1 players. Or maybe Tracy McGrady or perhaps even his Oklahoma City and Nets teammate Kevin Durant?

The clip is over two years old, so calling him the best player on the Houston Rockets makes sense. The best player in the league? Not a bad shout, since he was cooking players. But the best iso player ever? Come on, Barkley, you can do better! You’ve played against the best iso players of any era!

Also Read: “NBA Made a Big Mistake”: When Charles Barkley Blasted Teams for Blindly Emulating The Warriors

Charles Barkley provides that much-needed TRP to NBA on TNT – is he trying to be Kendrick Perkins?

If you think Shaq is a jokester, just watch Charles Barkley make his predictions. The round mound may feel like he’s Nostradamus, but he’s more like Sybill Trelawney from Harry Potter. Once in a generation—that is how many times he gets things right.

Kendrick Perkins also does the same thing, for ESPN. Nowhere close to being as successful as Charles as an individual, he has one thing over Chuck: Big Perk has a ring. But someone who’s played the game for so long cannot be so blind to the trends and the facts.

Which brings us viewers to an interesting question: Are they doing this just for the sake of TRP? Players who have a decade of experience at the highest level cannot be such Charlie Chaplins when it comes to their opinions, can they? Have the TV channels asked them to be silly so that they rack up views?

Also Read: Power forward Charles Barkley, used to “run like Derrick Rose and finish like Russell Westbrook”

About the author

Arun Sharma

Arun Sharma

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Arun Sharma is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. A double degree holder and a digital marketer by trade, Arun has always been a sports buff. He fell in love with the sport of basketball at a young age and has been a Lakers fan since 2006. What started as a Kobe Bryant obsession slowly turned into a lifelong connection with the purple and gold. Arun has been an ardent subscriber to the Mamba mentality and has shed tears for a celebrity death only once in his life. He believes January 26, 2020, was the turning point in the passage of time because Kobe was the glue holding things together. From just a Lakers bandwagoner to a basketball fanatic, Arun has spent 16 long years growing up along with the league. He thinks Stephen Curry has ruined basketball forever, and the mid-range game is a sight to behold. Sharma also has many opinions about football (not the American kind), F1, MotoGP, tennis, and cricket.

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