Barkley weighs in on Sixers
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Barkley weighs in on Sixers
NEW YORK - NBA Hall of Famer and former Sixer Charles Barkley is impressed with the way the current Sixers are playing for coach Doug Collins, but he is not backtracking on his statement that the Sixers would've been better off throwing games and missing the playoffs.
"I do think that," Barkley said yesterday at media forum on the NCAA Tournament broadcast partnership between CBS and Turner Sports. "They are going to get a good draft pick and they are going to have the same team next year."
But what about a young team growing for gaining playoff experience?
"Oh stop that," Barkley said. "Come on man. Look at all the moves teams have made in the Eastern Conference. [The Sixers] are going to be in the exact same boat next year. They are better. They have done a very good job. But in the big picture, they are going to be in the first round and be done."
So what's a mediocre franchise to do?
"They are going to have to trade players and get younger. I just don't believe that you should stand pat," he said. "I don't think you try to be the sixth, seventh or eighth seed and then lose in the first round of the playoffs.You have to get cap space to get younger and get better."
But the Sixers have one of the youngest rosters in the league, except for Elton Brand and Andre Iguodala.
"Yeah, you mean the two highest paid players?" Barkley said.
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Comments (37)
Barkley is 100% correct. But he will be trashed by the blind posters here.— JonKap- Barkley is dumber than Sarah Palin— MrBigDizzle
- There is something wrong with a system that rewards teams for "throwing games" rather than try to go as far as they can in the playoffs.— camdenlawprof
You be trashed because you comment on games you don't watch.- They tanked games last year and ended up with the 2nd pick in the draft. I think Turner will become a very good player in time but the jury is still out on that.
With all of the truly bad teams in the league this year what are the odds of that happening again?
And, wasn't Greg Oden supposed to be a can't miss franchise changing player? Where's he now?
That quote about trading players and getting younger just showed Barkley's ignorance about the makeup of this team.
Forget about the draft for anything other than role players for the foreseeable future unless some team is willing to accept a trade of one of our top players and picks for a trade up. That rarely happens.
Trades are even harder to pull off for established stars.
Free agents of any quality can't sign here unless Brand is traded or until he leaves when his contract expires. The former is still highly unlikely and the latter requires patience.
The key to getting better might actually be to get better.
What a concept!
— Rick Wise Guy - And therein lies the problem with the NBA. A team without a "superstar" cannot become better without a "superstar", especially when they are all grouping together.— trungy
- Tell it like it is, Charles!— madaboutit
- I agree with him. It's more of a commentary about the NBA than it is about the Sixers. In the NBA to win championships, you need big name player. The Sixers are a fun team to watch, and Doug Collins is the coach of the year. But the most the Sixers can really hope for is upsetting some team in the first round of the playoffs. The team is playing great, but all of the talk is whether or not they can climb into the 6th seed. It's a shame, but that is the product the NBA has become. It's not about being a team, it is about having a few superstars.— AreaMan
- sarah palin?? come on now. leave that bleep out of this. the nba is garbage now. bottom line. the lakers are the 2x defending champs. yawn... the sixers were a nice little story until.. the knicks got 'melo. (see phils sign cliff lee for the ny mutts) and unless you're a fan of the heat(soft), the knicks(no defense), the spurs(boring), the bulls(??), or those lakers and maybe the okc thunder. then what's the point??
- Who in this years draft is an impact player? Can someone name him? The players from 5-15 are basically all the same. JUST PLAY THE BEST BALL YOU CAN!— Old Head
- barkley's an idiot. tank the season and get younger? Were already one of the youngest teams in the nba. How are the nets doing??? LA clippers??? Yeah teach players to tank and hope that some superstar draft pick can come in and save us somehow. Who do you think that superstar draft pick will learn from?? The veteren's that havent learn to win. No wonder barkley never won a championship with idiotic thoughts like that. I bet I'd never here micheal jordan say something dumb like that. That's why he has 6 rings and barkley has none— sadfan84
- Amen to that! He's got no rings. What the hell does he know. Just how to throw people out of windows.— tfoz5150
- ..the sixers would have a much better chance at a 1st round upset if the playoff schd was fair. the games/series are so spread out that it gives crusty teams like the spurs/celtics too much to time re-up for the next game and/or round. and the younger teams get too much time to think about how big the games are. which often deflates their confidence.
- If the season ended today and they made the playoffs, they'd still end up with the 16th pick or. If they tanked and missed the playoffs. Chances are they'd get a late lottery pick, like 11 or 12. Are you really going to get a game changing player at 12 vs 16? At that point its luck.— way of the jeep
- Sixers need to pick up someone who can spit on little girls. You have to have good character to win championships.— clobal
- Yes, I quoted Charles' comment in a previous post in another article. I suggested that the league come up with a formula to reward previously lousy teams that show great improvement. They should have a formula where a team like the Sixers can move up in the draft. It would lead to more competitive games. Fan excitement would increase for the teams with the poorer records. The draft would become more interesting.
Instead, the league rewards teams for not trying and sending out undermanned teams to compete. Plus, the playoffs become more predictable.— samway - Better suggestion...just get the NBA out of Philly. Move them to Baltimore or somewhere else where someone cares.— cnova000
- It's a young, exciting team that has the perfect coach. A championship team? No. But then even with all these "elite" teams - Spurs, Celtics, Lakers, Miami, Mavs, Bulls ... only two of them are even going to play for the title. And I would not be shocked to see the Sixers pull an upset and make it to the second round. Collins has these youngsters playing hard, playing D and believing in themselves. Don't carp. Enjoy.— CarpGuy
- Nice message to send the fans CB-ESP TO a team that is having trouble
getting people to come to the games.Hey come on am\nd spend your money
and watch us go thru the motions.You know that by the end of the season there are some sixers who would interest some GM'S for potential trades.So the Walls and Cousins teams are doing the right thing-losing games--NOT-they just are on terrible teams.This is not a terrible team!!— HO HUM - As Trungy alluded to above, the league will have to do something about multiple superstar free agents all signing to be on the same team. It will devastate fan interest in the smaller markets.
But first they will allow Chris Paul to sign with the Knicks. The league wants to see a powerhouse NY franchise again.— samway - ..it's funny how everyone focuses on the corrupt behavior in mlb/nba. the boston celtics getting kg for dirty. if they would've gotten the #1 pick that yr... the c's would've picked the bust from... thee ohio state. no kg, no ray allen and no title.
-the lakers getting paul gasol was shady. and stern just sat back and watched "the decision" disaster unfold. he also allowed the 2005 indiana pacers to get the short end of the stick after the brawl with the defending champion pistons. even thouh it was ben wallace who started the whole thing.
-and like someone has already said, now the nba seems to have their heart on see the knick win again. the 'melo drama was insane. at least the cliff decision was during the off season. - i meant mlb/nfl lockout
- Barkley is a lush. A mouth that doesnt know when to stop. He is simply rude. He ruined the sicers when he played for them with his selfishness. Oh, the Palin remark? Obama is turning out to be the worst president in modern history. What do you expect? He had one real job in a law firm working 3 cases, one was ACORN. Surprise! A community organizer? Law professor? Con Law? Did he even have one case with a constitutional issue? Did he even appear in court?? Oh, and a politician. Socialist. Reagan warned you clowns that the socialist would take over medicine, because it is easy to play to the passions as opposed to the logic.— Wise_Owl
- ...charlie sheen is that you? everyone please extend a warm welcome for... the dude-father.
- Can we get a quote from Billy C or Jerry West instead of the knuckle head. If Charles knew so much he would be a President of this team. He is on TNT because he is ratings. He says dumb things all the time and gets away with it. Did he say the same thing about OKC last year??? I loved Charles as a player, but I also feel that he is still bitter towards the Sixers franchise. He felt like he got a raw deal here and he will never get over it. The Sixers are stocked with pieces now that many GM's are salivating over. Why don't we ask the Houston Rockets if they were happy they got Charles or the Phoenix Suns. Did either of those teams win a title? There has always been a "dominant" team, so should all of the other franchises give up? I mean do any of the Eastern Conference teams think even with their moves that they are beating the Lakers with a healthy Bynum and Gasol upfront? Enjoy this team and enjoy the style of play that they are playing. It is fun to watch and if you are fan of the game then buy yourself a ticket because these guys play the right way.— Mattb
- What about the Detroit Pistons of 02-03? No stars, champions.
- Chuck is an idiot. If we lose games then what? Who is the player that we're trying to get in this year's draft, the Clippers traded their first round pick (a lottery pick) to the Cavs because they know there is nothing available this year. Kate Fagan wrote an article about how its beneficial for the young players to be playing for something, I'd much rather play at the end of April then have a small chance of landing the top pick, after the kid from Ohio State its pretty much a crapshoot and we'll still get a decent pick in the mid-teens where we're going to select. Charles Barkley took Allen Iverson first in an NBA All-Time Fantasy Draft he also never won a championship, so can we please stop going to him for advice.— ChunkyLover53
- Truth hurts. Ad hominem attacks on Barkley's character don't make his point any less valid. And silly remarks about us getting the second pick last year without striking gold are just that: silly. The cheapest and most efficient way to accumulate talent is by drafting it, principally in the 1-9 slots. And depending on the quality of one draft or another, a team might need to do it for a few years. Competing for 6th, 7th, and 8th playoff spots means you don't EVER get a 1-9 draft pick unless you trade for one (and nobody wants to be here now, nor do we have assets to acquire such players). And why are 1-9 picks so important? Here's a clue: look at this years' all-star rosters and tell me how many of those players are not lottery picks! Yeah, tank. Or, at least (pre-February deadline) give away Iguodala for peanuts if it gave you more flexibility to acquire younger talent and/or more draft picks--and give Holiday more responsibility running the offense and Turner and Young more playing time. Frankly, this was a n0-F&^*ing-brainer, which they goofed up yet again. Collins and our front office care more about meaningless wins than with long-term excellence. Sir Charles couldn't be more correct on this one.— Hobbes
Comment removed.- Challenger,
That's probably wishful thinking on your part....getting a legit shot-blocker and or veteran PG with the money freed up from expiring Kapono and Songalia. If the Sixers could have afforded to take back any part of that $11 mil they would have made a trade before the deadline. Hopefully Thad is resigned and our draft pick...not much $$$ left after that....vets minimum is the way they'll go.— scmona - Look, referencing the 2004 Pistons team and comparing them to our team is, like, nuts! They had FOUR all-stars on the squad. FOUR! Many of whom made MULTIPLE apprearances! One of them was a DPOY on multiple occasions. We have none of that!— Hobbes
- Tanking or throwing are illegal,aren't they? Would that attract new or even some old fans? Herm Edwards,says,"you play the game to win". That's how players get better and that's why I go to the games. If you want to criticize past or present management mistakes,fine. But, players play the game to win,even pickup games. Do some GM's direct their coaches to lose? When does he then tell that coach to try to win? What message does tanking send to the young rookie,the fan,the advertisers?That's why we have the lottery system. It isn't perfect,but. If the second pick was a Blake Griffin type, we'd all be praising management. Do we keep tanking until we get the right draft choice? Sometimes,it's luck. Sometimes it's smart management. Ludicrous ,unethical,and probably,illegal suggestion to tank.— philsix6
- Tanking or throwing are illegal,aren't they? Would that attract new or even some old fans? Herm Edwards,says,"you play the game to win". That's how players get better and that's why I go to the games. If you want to criticize past or present management mistakes,fine. But, players play the game to win,even pickup games. Do some GM's direct their coaches to lose? When does he then tell that coach to try to win? What message does tanking send to the young rookie,the fan,the advertisers?That's why we have the lottery system. It isn't perfect,but. If the second pick was a Blake Griffin type, we'd all be praising management. Do we keep tanking until we get the right draft choice? Sometimes,it's luck. Sometimes it's smart management. Ludicrous ,unethical,and probably,illegal suggestion to tank.— philsix6
- Why do people even listen to him. Me, I like Barkley because he makes me laugh. That's why he is in the network. He breaks the ice with his stupidity.— Dwayne77
- Agreed Dwayne77. Tanking does not gaurantee ANYTHING. A high draft pick garuantees nothing. The only thing that purposely losing doesis ensure that nobody will be watching, and anyone who did care will stop caring. The players will learn how to lose. FAs will not want to come. How long have franchises like the Clippers or Golden State had dismall stretches? How'd it work out for them? Play to win and good things happen. Get the right bunch of guys, the right coach, and maybe...just maybe...a lucky mid-level draft pick or a sly acquisition and we just might slip into a home playoff series next year. Either way, I am enjoying the hell of this season. Anyone that pretends to be a Philly fan should be too, regardless of what the 1-4 seeds look like.— Zee77
- Barkley would have a point if the young players weren't playing. But they are, and they are getting better. Nocioni is on the bench. Kapono is on the bench. Battie is on the bench. Does Charles see anyone on the bench who has a chance of getting better in the future to supplant the older Brand and Iggy?
Making a trade to try and improve is reasonable. Iggy will get you the most value and his role can be replaced by Young or Turner. But tanking games makes no sense for a team playing it's young guys that have potential.— blah - I agree 100% w/ Barkley too. The sixers are a good team but not very good and definitely not a great team. They do have the potential to be a great team with so many young players. But as of right now you've Got in the East Boston, Chicago, Miami, Orlando, New York & Oklahoma you've got to go thru to be a contender. Each one of these teams will get better esp Chicago b/c it's internal verus major trades like miami & Boston. But what’s the point of being just good enough to make the playoff and be 1 & done? Ok maybe get there this year but just like me i will expect more from them next season and if there only going to do the same thing and be 1 and done, i'd prefer them go thru the draft to get better, They should have traded Iggy and let turner play it out and get better. The kids is a good player with a major upside in fact i see him as a Paul pierce. So i agreement w/ Barkley’s assessment of this team. Plus this team doesn’t have the instinct to win see last night’s game and the Dallas game. If we do this right how Larry Brown did and build around Holiday I think this team will be great.— tucole
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About this blog
Bob Cooney has been at the Daily News for more than 20 years, working in the sports department for the past 15. This is his third season on the Sixers beat. He has covered just about everything, but mostly college basketball, where he was the La Salle beat writer for six seasons. E-mail Bob at cooneyb@phillynews.com and follow him on Twitter.
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