The Los Angeles Lakers always seem to land stars by any means, whether via trade or free agency. However, there are also intriguing “what if” scenarios throughout history, one of those being Charles Barkley.
Barkley, who played 16 seasons in the NBA, averaged 22.1 points and 11.7 rebounds on 54.1% from the field through 1,073 career games. He was a dominant force in his first eight seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers, notably as a rebound champion in the 1986-1987 season.
In addition to being an 11-time All-NBA player, 11-time All-Star, making the All-Rookie team 1984-1985 and winning the MVP in the 1992-93 season, Barkley was one of the most impactful players of his era and likely would be looked at as even greater if he had won a championship. There’s some scenarios where that could’ve happened and one that involves the Lakers. Going back to his final seasons with Philadelphia, Barkley shared that he thought he got traded to the Lakers before the 76ers ultimately backed out of the deal, via NBA on TNT:
“There’s one trade, I got traded to the Lakers. True story, I get a call one morning from my agent. ‘Hey, the Sixers finally pulled the trigger. I got traded to the Lakers.’ I’m like, ‘Damn, thank you. About time, I can’t wait.’ So, I get my friends together. We go to Friday’s on City Line Avenue, we get blasted. We get blasted, Ernie. I say, ‘Let’s meet at 12. I’m out of hell, I’m out purgatory.’ About 3 o’clock, my agent calls me, ‘The Sixers pulled out the deal.’ We got a game that night, I don’t remember the game. I can’t remember, I could fake it and come up with some number. I run home, take a quick power nap and I don’t even know what happened in the game. I was so mad, number one. But, that’s the weirdest trade situation I’ve ever been involved in. It’s a good one.”
An interesting wrinkle would have been to see who L.A. gave up in this potential blockbuster deal to land Barkley. At the very least, he would have paired up alongside Magic Johnson, who always made his teammates around him better.
Unfortunately, the Hall of Fame forward finished his career without a ring and seeing how dominant the Lakers were in the late 80s and early 90s, Barkley could have certainly challenged for a championship should he have landed in L.A.
Charles Barkley criticizes Lakers’ handling of Bronny James
Since moving on to broadcasting, Charles Barkley has been vocal about the Lakers and what he dislikes about them. One gripe he has is how L.A. is handling Bronny James’ rookie season so far.
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