Charles Barkley hasn’t made it easy for Phoenix Suns fans to jump on board with him lately. He’s continuing his descent into cold takes with the Suns with his latest take as well.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!According to NBC Sports Bay Area’s Monte Poole, Barkley has a select few teams he views as contenders — with Phoenix being out of the mix.
“I was happy for Denver,” stated Barkley when asked on his predictions for the 2023-24 NBA Finals contenders. “Getting a chance to see what the Joker [Nikola Jokic] could accomplish is phenomenal. It was great for the NBA.
Barkley did note in the interview that it was too early for predictions, but that didn’t stop the Suns legend from giving his take on some potential contenders.
“The Lakers have gotten better. There’s going to be some surprise teams. The Celtics are interesting, going out to get [Kristaps] Porziņģis.”
The Hall of Famer also mentioned the Philadelphia 76ers as a possible title favorite. The 76ers chances, as he noted, pending on the result of the ever-revolving James Harden trade dilemma.
It would be simple for Barkley to carelessly overlook his former team in the Suns, who have revamped their entire roster this summer. Still, it isn’t Barkley’s first time being critical when it comes to Phoenix.
The argument could easily be made that the Suns have had the better offseason thus far than any team mentioned in his list. Phoenix was able to land Bradley Beal while surrounding their new star-studded starting unit with valuable supporting pieces.
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On paper, at least, the Suns certainly look better now than when the season concluded. Phoenix unloaded players such as Chris Paul, who’s age and availability had become a question. On the other hand, they were able to bring in younger, developed talent such as Yuta Watanabe along with older, dependable veterans in Eric Gordon.
