Years after his retirement, The Round Mound of Rebound continues to make headlines with his work in the NBA. Charles was always a popular personality on the court, and so he seemed to recognize that he could carry that popularity with him into a television studio. A lot of the times, once an athlete retires they’ll see themselves fall off the map, and their cash reserves begin to dwindle. Outside of all of that, he also serves as a studio analyst during NCAA’s March Madness. Alongside the likes of Kenny Smith, Shaquille O’ Neal, and Ernie Johnson Jr., Charles will provide NBA coverage during pregame and halftime shows. Starting in 2000, he became an NBA studio analyst for TNT. It’s just in a different way than before. Barkley retired from NBA after sixteen seasons, and I think it’s safe to say that everyone knew that they had been able to bear witness to one of the greatest, most dominant careers in NBA history.įast forward to today, and Charles Barkley is still very much a part of the NBA. The 1999-2000 season was his very last, with a ruptured left quadriceps tendon effectively ending his career in basketball. He played great when he was healthy, but it was obviously another story when he played hurt. Despite his stellar efforts, Charles continued to struggle with injury. When he came aboard, the Rockets were hungry for a title, with a roster that included the likes of Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon. Again, he found himself being traded, this time to the Houston Rockets. Charles helped to lead the Suns to NBA Finals, and his efforts earned him his first and only Most Valuable Player award.ĭue to injury, Barkley struggled a bit during his last couple of seasons with Phoenix. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns, where he showed that his success in Philadelphia hadn’t just been a fluke. Barkley would play for the 76ers through 1992, leaving an impressive legacy behind him. Within the span of a few years, Charles Barkley went from being some young, raw talent to being a franchise player. This happened again just one season later, when Julius Erving ended up retiring. His performance improved as a result, and he earned a trip to an NBA All-Star game. His departure left a gaping hole in Philadelphia’s leadership, and so Barkley took it upon himself to step into a larger role among the team. By his second year, Charles Barkley was the leading rebounder and the second best scorer on the 76ers.īarkley’s career took on a whole other tone prior to the 1986-87 season, when Moses Malone was traded to another team. Early in his career, Barkley relied on these basketball greats to help him transition into becoming a true NBA player. The 76ers had just swept the NBA Finals in the year prior, and the team was stacked with players like Julius Erving, Maurice Cheeks, and Moses Malone. He was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1984 NBA Draft, coming onto a team that already had a lot of talent. Charles would forgo his senior year with Auburn in order the enter the NBA draft. He made the most of his time at Auburn, and to this day he holds the school record for career field goal percentage. His level of play quickly earned him the affectionate nickname “The Round Mound of Rebound”.Īlthough Charles Barkley is primarily known for being a power forward, he played as a center in college. However, he quickly showed that he was even more talented than everyone else around him. Compared to a lot of the other guys around him, Barkley was short and fat. Even when he had earned a starting spot on the SEC school’s roster, he still had people underestimating him. Due to this promising level of play on a high school level, Charles was able to play basketball at Auburn University. Barkley turned heads at the state semifinals, when he showed that he could outplay even some of Alabama’s most sought-after players. By the time he was a senior, he had grown several inches and was cleared to play for the varsity team. However, due to his small size he was unable to make the varsity team. He wanted to play basketball locally, at Leeds High School.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |