How GOOD Was Charles Barkley Actually? 

Barkley being 6’4 and a half banging in the low post grabbing 15 boards a night in a forward dominant era. Pretty spectacular

MJ took a jab at Barkley asking "Charles, when are you gonna get in shape"? Barkley: "Well round's a shape"!

Top 5 in his prime? In 1992-93 the only player better than Charles was arguably the greatest player in history.

The only problem for Barkley is that he played during MJ era

He was a PF at only 6'5" during an era when size was still everything. It's a testament to Barkley's skills that he lasted 16 years in the league with 11 All-Star appearances during _that_ era as a 6'5" PF.

yo remember on NBA on TNT when they kept showing that pic of the latino guy in Charles Barkley's jersey and Shaq kept calling him Carlos Barkley

“He was undersized... well vertically.” Had me ded

He was a beast. He was so good, he won MVP against Jordan.

You never mentioned that Barkley was the leading scorer of the greatest team in the world, the 1992 dream team. That alone will tell you how good Barkley was

surprisingly people forget that barkley BEAT JORDAN for mvp in 1993

No mention of him being Olympian MVP 1992 with the Dream Team ?

Charles Barkley would body Dray Green for fun and dunk on him because he wanted to. DrayGreen can't handle a prime/healthy Charles.

that Finals loss to the Bulls broke my heart. I went outside and shot free throws for an hour with tears in my eyes.

Barkley is probably my favorite all-time player to watch . When he was in his prime , he was a beast! Loved watching his game. Handled the ball like a guard, could jump outta the building , amazing rebounder... he had it all. Cuz of MJ , i think he gets over-looked in a lot of areas. I always loved how high he could get up from a stand still off of 2 feet. He shocked the shit out of many centers, try'n to dunk on him as he would send it back ^ ^ If i could build a team with NBA players...from any era , Barkley would be a starter on it. Thanks for the memories Chuck! Love & miss ya play'n , Brotha!

Prime Barkley will eat anyone in the nba these day alive

Horace Grant said in an interview before that Chuck was the Michael Jordan of power forwards. Interview was during Barkely’s prime.

He was favored to beat Jordan in the NBA Finals, that's how good he was

I saw Barkley once in an exhibition game in Munich, Germany against a good German team. It was borderline funny how he had his way with them. He positioned himself at the low block and methodically worked his way to the rim. Again and again and again. There was absolutely nothing the defence could do to stop him. Never saw such combination of brute strength and finesse footwork.

Charles was great, this era of the NBA was incredible. There was so many great players Charles gets over looked. I hate to say this, but had he been 6’9” or taller we might be considering him as a top 5-10 player of all time. One of my favorite players of all time.

One of the best power forwards ever to play the game One of the 50 greatest players in NBA history 1st round pick by the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers in the 1984 NBA Draft out of Auburn University 20,000+ career points 10,000+ career rebounds Averaged 10.0 rebounds a game 15 of his 16 nba seasons (8.6 rebounds a game in 84-85) 1993 MVP 1991 All Star ⭐️ MVP 1992 Gold medal 🥇 Dream Team 🇺🇸 1996 gold medal 🥇 Team USA 🇺🇸 1st Ballot Basketball 🏀 Hall of Fame

The Round Mound of Rebound! Easily one of the best nicknames in sports

Another thing people forget about Barkley; he was the best performing player on the '92 Dream Team, even having a better Olympics than Jordan.

My 2 favorite players ever were Barkley and Ewing...both underrated

Watch the old dream team videos Barkley was the star player over all the hall of Famers. I remember when he was at Auburn, he almost single handedly dismantled a UK team that had 5 starters that played in the NBA including two 7 footers he out rebounded.

Good video. I hate that people only know Charles as the guy on TNT. He was a freakish athlete and an all time great.

no way donkey green can guard him in his prime

He is my favorite player!. Insane athleticism, best PF to run the ball ever, extremely good mid-range shooter. Im biased, but for me he is in my top 10 greatest ever. Despite never winning a ring.

Barkley was so much more fun to watch than Karl Malone.

When I got Lakers vs. Celtics for my Genesis, I loved picking the Sixers, because only Barkley had this unstoppable dunk called the Gorilla Slam. No one could block it, no step needed, it just exploded onto the rim. Ahh the 90's!

Nice vid, good summary. Sir Charles would no doubt have at least 1 ring had he played in any other time besides Jordan-era, he was just that type of athletic phenomenon. You could have mentioned his time on the 92 Dream Team as well. People forget that out of Bird, Magic, Jordan, Pippen, Malone etc it was Barkley that lead the team in scoring.

You left out a few key points..i thought you would mention his all star appearances and the fact that barkley led the 1992 olympic dream team in points with 18ppg, a team that had jordan, david robinson, stockton, malone, bird, johnson ect.

You’re forgetting maybe the most intriguing part of his game; he was able to run the fast break after a board and either score or make the pass after collapsing the D. Today, a guy like Draymond Green gets a lot of credit for doing that, but Barkley was maybe the best big ever in this respect, pushing the ball up after a re and reading the D.

The no rings thing is ridiculous considering most good, great and other HOFers in his era didn't have rings bc of dominant franchices that were stacked -- mainly the 90s Jordan Bulls. It's only because he's on TV and with Shaq, that she gets shit on for it. You ever hear people give Penny, Stockton, Malone or Ewing a hard time about it, for example? Sheesh.

I just wish he gave license for 2k to put him in 2k... what a baller.

5:05 "sixers were always in bottom half of defensive rating and that was the hole in Barkley's game that never really improved" 6:43 "defensively he also got a bit better but that was mainly a team thing - it's easier to play defence when you're surrounded by better defenders" so which is it, the player or the team that's responsible for defence???? can't have it both ways

6foot4 avg 10 reb for career enuff said

He was one of those guys that you play a pickup game against, overweight, but was strong and fast. You're looking at yourself like I'm skinny or lean and I'm running out of breath. He was a beast. For someone who was in the 6' 5" range, rebounding and putting back missed shots like he was a power forward/center. And this was a time when the NBA was not undersized. Teams actually had true centers and true power forwards!

Prime chuck was a animal thanks for showing the young bucks bout sir Charles salute

literally nobody ever stopped charles barkley from dominating the paint ever in his prime..best rebounder and coast to coast dunker as well..absolute freak of nature..second most entertaining player to watch behind mj only..sometimes the guy was playing some follow volleyball style under the rim as if he was the only guy in the paint..

Watching Chuck growing up he was my second favorite player behind Jordan and seeing that he was 6'4 he was pretty amazing

He was maybe 6'5" or so and look at the era. I was watching the games then and he was a force of nature. He just scored no matter what you did to guard him. For him to be that efficient in the era of dominant centers and forwards in the 80's and 90's is amazing.

Sir Charles was a BEAST. I was MJ fan naturally, who wasnt in the 80s and 90s, but Barkley was a great player to watch and see play. You knew he would get buckets. Unguardable. No one player could stop him then and im pretty sure he would be unstoppable today even more.

Very good player and notorious gambler...

Barkley was one of the best ever at his position and he is kind of a running joke as not being good because of how much Shaq has to say about him. They have a rivalry and go at each other and since shaq tends to be the more popular individual when he says Barkley wasn't good and that " he shouldn't even be a hall of famer", the young generation believes that whole-heartedly. But statistically he was crazy good and considering his height at his position.

Barkley was mental in back in the day. I think he has the most rebounds in the second half, offensive I mean, of 11? 11 ORB in two quarters? WHAT?! I think he's only behind Tim Duncan as a power forward.

Barkley was a BEAST. Dude put up insane numbers in his prime. His scoring and rebounding numbers in particular were crazy. In 1993 he was arguably the best player on the planet. Only MJ was arguably better that year.

Unbelievably good, and now he's great for TV.

Barles Charkley

He actually looks very explosive and fast

He had underrated leaping ability and long arms. He was unstoppable.

So glad to see him get a bit of recognition with this video. It seems like people forgot about how great he was. He was so fucking intense! My favorite player back then and still is!

Charles was a baller!

This channel is a really great NBA talks channel, definitely in my top 2 (Mike Korzemba is also on the top 2 and they're interchangeable). Much love from the Philippines. Keep it up!

Damn Barkley with Magic. That would have been a scary team.

Sir Charles sure was a fun player to watch. Very intense and explosively athletic. Getting to see him commentating after all these years is a bonus.

he was a terror defensively when it came to intimidating a player and knocking the hell out of their shots around the rim, and he'd own the defensive glass, plus was quick and plenty energetic enough to get his hands in the passing lanes and create a counterattacking situation (for e.g. he avged around 2spg multiple times). But perhaps his one on one marking of his man wasn't the best but then again which great PF is ? A couple.

I clearly remember the “Dream Team” US of A olympic team back in the 1990’s. Chuck did not start, but he was truly the only unstoppable player on the team that summer in a rotation nearly completely full of future American basketball hall of famers. You mentioned team defense rightly so. Defensive stops and up-tempo offense translate to easier offense. Barkley was a beast. He played great without other great defenders in his career, but during that olympics he showed he was one of the best ever with a team full of “fantasy” players.

love the effort of making a video about Charles as a player! He gets disrespected way too much in media these days as an all time great player who proved himself in two of the most competitive as well as coining decades of the NBA. Despite his playing prowess he was also a huge part of forming the NBA's culture as we know it now, nationally and globaly (dream teams top scorer). I think you still leaving some of his strengths out!! While I agree that he has to live with being called not clutch enough since he ultimativley did not win it all he was amazingly clutch during his 92 run to the finals where he hit the game winning J over David Robinson as well as scoring 464 and 24 in game 6 of the WCF!!! Also I think while its true that he was not a dominant defender I think it gets overmentioned over how GREAT of a ballhandler he was at his position and also how skilled of a passer he was! He changed the game with the way he could lead the break with skill and sheer power. He was also super quick while being one of the strongest players in a very physical league! So please do not leave out how skilled he was besides being a power player

Charles in his prime was fun to watch, but you're right he took too many 3's! Especially with Phoenix.

Barkley hit 58% of his shots and 63% on 2's from 87-92? Holy cow! I knew was an absolute monster in his prime, but that efficient?

I remember watching Sir Charles in the 90's and he was pound for pound the most physical and strongest player I ever saw. He played against all the legends during his career and Nobody crashed the boards like him and Rodman neither it was beautiful to watch.

He was not turrible !! Got more out of his size and work ethic than just about anyone. The Round Mound of Rebound is still entertaining to listen to.

Barkley was probably the 2nd greatest player during the 80’s and 90’s other than Jordan and if not for Jordan would be at least a 1 time champion.. people don’t also realize that the suns lost the the eventual champions 3 years in a row.. they could have been back to back to back champions

A very good donut eater

I saw him numerous times at The Palace growing up when he was in town. In his prime, he was an absolute beast.

Probably one of the best individual players of all time, in terms of ability to create at will. It's too bad that Barkley didn't get a championship, but the 90s were a very tough time to be a player in the Western Conference.

I vividly remember the Suns v Bulls finals. Phoenix could have easily won that.

If he won 1 ring many people would call him the best pf of all time

The way he played the game at 6' 4" in his Sixers days may be the most impressive thing I've ever seen on an NBA court. His game evolved, especially with the Suns and Rockets, and while he was always very good, nothing was quite like the way he physically dominated much bigger guys in his early NBA days.

I was a huge Barkley fan as a kid. I’m still mad at John Paxon over that shot in Game 6. Barkley always seemed an inch away from getting back to the finals, but whether it was Olajuwon, John Stockton, or age...something always seemed to get in the way of Barkley getting over that hump.

Charles Barkley was one of the greatest players ever. Bobby Knight called him a “fat pig,” which is proof of his greatness, because Bobby was not exactly a great judge of talent.

A Top 20 player all time No.5 best PF All time

That pass at 4:47😂

Barkey was an absolute Beast. Too short but still dominant at the same time. I met him in Houston late in his career and he was a wonderful guy to talk to. Much props :-)

Son, defense is a team thing. By the way Draymond Green is not a better player than Barkley. Better defender, but Barkley was a 6'5" forward in the days of the 7footers.

I go to Leeds, which is his high school

Do a video of the mistery of Manute's Bol age please

It’s funny how chuck is disrespected in this era, when if he played in today’s game he’d be one of the most dominant players ever

Prime Barkley- 24.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.5 steals, 55% shooting. 1986-1987 Barkley. 23 points, 14.6 rebounds(led the league), 4.9 assists, 1.8 steals, 1.5 blocks... 87-93. 26 points , 11.9 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal , 56% shooting . The man was an animal . Duncan at his best was from 98-04. 23/12/3/2 on 50% shooting. Not saying Barkley was better, he’s not. just saying Barkley was a monster.

The thing about Barkley is that he looks undersized on his own, but when you put him next to another center, his shoulders, arms and legs are like twice as big. The dude was jacked without losing much mobility because of his size. Reminds me of you know who, Lebron James. He was also an "anti-big man". Mismatch to whoever guarded him and had the hands to strip 7 footers on the catch.

Charles was so cool and i watched up to him to get better at my position as a PF Defensive Player. He is really underrated this Days. But back in the 90's he was a Big Star and well known! We still Love you Sir Charles

My favorite player ever! At 6'4" no one is even close. He owned everybody he played against.

No dream team feature? He was the best player there...

Barkley highlights are 50% more entertaining than those of almost any other player. Wild coast to coast dunking rampages? Clutch game winners? Half-court behind the back passes? Blocking shots like a madman? It's all there. One of the old NBA videos I used to own had this clip with the announcer saying, "The 'sucker play' by Barkley. Does it work?......Yes!" as he let the ball roll on the floor for several feet before grabbing at the last minute and driving for a score. He was good enough to make crazy stuff up successfully. Real talent there.

LMFAO at how your voice transitioned so much at the end 😂 9:24

Do a Dr. J how good was he really

"he gained 20 pounds in 2 days...." :-D LOL

He was old in Houston and STILL never averaged less than 10 boards in a season. He also never cracked the 20 point avg in his last 4 seasons but STILL managed to avg 22 points for his career.

Barkey was 5'10 until the summer of his Junior year in HS, but shot up to 6'4 by the time school started for his senior year. Billy Cunningham said "He was a power forward in a small forward's body with guard instincts." He really was a beast all on his own for the most part. Sad that Danny Manning got hurt late in that one season, he could easily been the difference vs Houston.

Love your vids Andy greetings from Argentina

He was the reason why there was a 5 second violation

Once again, one of my favorite guy back in the 90s. I know he was statistically better with the Sixers but my favorite Barkley era always was the Suns. And yes, I have seen him nailed 3s during those days.

Best Charles Barkley moment, tossing man out the window of a bar.

My favorite player of all time

Barkley is actually 6'6 I saw Him play with Dwayne wade who was 6'4 Barkley was taller than him At his 50s

the best 6ft4 player of all time

No, some things you got them wrong. Barkley was not that predictable as you think, actually you can say the opposite. He could play PF because he was good enough as a defender to guard opposite PFs. That allowed to play as a PF were he was more effective, but he played as a SF many times in his career. I remember him many times playing alongside AC Green (and the center be Joe Kleine, Mark West, Danny Shayes etc). Another point that you have it wrong, Barkely athletic skills did not essentially declined during the years,. but his health. This is very different. The healthy Barkley in his mid-30s was as devestating as the young one, maybe even more. The problem is that this did not happen often as the years progressed since his back problems etc made his lost games, practices, etc and so on. His 3 point performance also became erratic in his later years, for the same reasons.

At 84 I was in kindergarten. I didn’t start watching basketball until I was in jr-high . When I saw Sir Charles for the first he was dominating the paint. Even against more bigger centers/opponents he still managed to score buckets. Sir Charles is one of the Greats that never won a championship ring. Because the 76ers should have done a better job at trading players to get better supporting teammates for Sir Charles.

Do one on George gervin, he's severely underrated!

Is timing on those rebounds is fantastic. Prob why he got so many was just timing and reaction.