Charles Barkley did help the Phoenix Suns all the way to the NBA Finals, back in 1992, where they lost against Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls. Barkley was the league’s MVP that season but ended up having what would be his best-ever campaign, in a Suns jersey. The remaining 3 years that Barkley spent in Phoenix were marred with Playoff exits and injury issues. As a result, Barkley, whose contract meant he would earn $4,695,000 in 1996-97, had no idea where he would be playing. Speaking on the All the Smoke podcast, a few months ago, Chuck claimed he had no idea he was being shopped around by the Suns until he received calls from the Houston Rockets.
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Barkley was told repeatedly by the Phoenix Suns that he was not being shopped around, despite the Rockets’ claims. Their best player still, Chuck had been an MVP in each of his seasons at Phoenix despite his team crashing out of the Playoffs early each year. His final season resulted in a first-round playoff exit which effectively led to him being traded to the Rockets.
Charles Barkley did not want to join the Houston Rockets from the Suns
The interview saw Barkley reveal how he had no intention of leaving the Suns. As a matter of fact, he was lied to, with the Suns claiming that they were not shopping him around.
This was despite Barkley receiving a call from the Rockets, who wanted to know whether he would want a new contract if he was traded. Barkley claimed that he had no plans of moving away.
However, after the call, he was once again told by the Suns that they were not shopping around. Chuck ended up receiving another call from the Rockets, who still asked the same question. Chuck ended up claiming that he was the only player the Suns had and that they “ain’t f**king shopping him around“.
The result was that Chuck was effectively backdoored out of Phoenix by the franchise, despite them claiming multiple times that he was not being shopped around. Things eventually worked out, with Barkley in good spirits after the move ended up going through,
“I’m excited because I called the shots. When push comes to shove, I think you have to stand up to the system.”
Barkley claimed that he was the one who had called the shots and stood up to the system when he wanted the trade, according to the Washington Post. While Chuck initially had no intention of leaving the Suns, the way he was treated meant that the move was the right decision for all the parties involved.
Charles Barkley was accused of forming a superteam by Shaquille O’Neal
Barkley’s time at the Houston Rockets also did not result in a ring. His best year came during his first season when the Rockets were knocked out by the Utah Jazz in the conference finals.
Despite forming effectively a superteam alongside Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler (and later Scottie Pippen), the Rockets failed to gel and were handed multiple Playoff exits. Chuck, during his analyst career, has often said that he hates stars who end up creating superteams to win rings.
However, according to Shaquille O’Neal, Chuck’s Rockets’ team was effectively also a super team. Despite boasting three of the league’s biggest stars, the Houston Rockets failed to win a championship.
