Charles Barkley: You really think Stephen Curry wouldn't break against the Bad Boys?

Stephen Curry, who is currently the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made, was specifically asked to discuss the players who stand out in terms of possible impact on the game. The point guard mentioned Luka Doncic among the group of athletes in their mid-to-late 20s who will be on the playoff stage with an opportunity to chase championships and MVP trophies. “Luka is like the guy, obviously, that’s right on the precipice of accomplishing all those accolades and what he’s about as a player. That threshold of like, ‘How do you just crack through?’ I hope it’s not now,” Curry said. “When you play against him, you can feel it.” -via Dallas Morning News / August 24, 2023

“About 15 to 20 minutes into it, he’s in the fifth or sixth time trying to get through it. He’s getting to the very end. I looked at him and said, ‘It’s been a long day. If we don’t finish tonight, it’s not the end of the world.’ For the first time ever, he looked at me like, ‘What the hell are you talking about? We’ve never given up on a drill and we’re not going to start tonight.’ So I said, ‘Let’s go and get it done.’ An hour and a half later, we’re still shooting the same drill. But he would not leave until he got it done.” -via SportsKeeda / August 23, 2023

Payne: “The approach is the same. He’s won a couple of championships, and that’s really what you’re playing for. There’s a championship mentality. He’s getting better. I watched him play with Chris Paul last week. There was an ease with which he does everything that everybody else finds difficult. That’s the same thing on the court. He’s still getting better. There’s no dropoff coming anytime soon. That also makes him the best point guard that has ever played. -via SportsKeeda / August 23, 2023

It took us to the end of the podcast to get to LeBron, but Barkley offered a powerful message about the Lakers star, calling LeBron’s story the greatest in sports history. “I don’t get caught up in the silliness of who’s greater, LeBron or Michael or blah, blah, blah. I just think that that’s just easy pickins for guys,” Barkley said on SI Media With Jimmy Traina. “First of all, I think LeBron is a really nice man. I think he’s a really nice man and he’s a really good dude, but I’ll say this: I think his story, it’s the greatest story in sports history. People forget, Kobe Bryant wasn’t very good coming into the NBA. People forget that. And he’s one of the greatest ever, you know. Kevin Garnett struggled. -via Sports Illustrated / August 25, 2023

Charles Barkley: “The only guy I’ve ever seen come right out of high school who lived up was LeBron. And for him to come in at 18 and be as good as he was as a player, and obviously he’s come in and he’s one of the greatest ever, depending on what generation you’re from, and to never have gotten in trouble, especially in today’s society where everybody’s got a cellphone and everybody’s out to get you, I think his story is the greatest story in sports. To be that good. Number one, to live up to the hype, but also grow into the conversation of the GOAT and never even came close to getting in trouble. I think his story is the greatest story in sports history, and I’ll always admire him.” -via Sports Illustrated / August 25, 2023

Bill Simmons had Charles Barkley on as a guest and Chuck offered up a pretty hot take about the FIBA World Cup games. Barkley said basketball would be better off if Team USA actually lost the Gold Medal. Not just here in these FIBA World Cup games, but in the Olympics, too. Here’s why: “They act like if we don’t win the gold medal it’s going to be the worst thing to ever happen to civilization. I actually disagree with that. I think it’d be great. Because I think it’d really help with popularity in one of these little third-world countries if they won the gold medal. Can you imagine if France won the gold medal? How popular would basketball become in France?” -via USA Today Sports / August 25, 2023