NBA Hall-of-Famer and TNT analyst Charles Barkley hasn’t had a whole lot of nice things to say about Kobe Bryant, Lonzo Ball or the Los Angeles Lakers in recent years. But believe it or not, there was a time he actually wanted to suit up for the iconic franchise.
Barkley never got his wish, but he apparently came close at the time he was asking to be traded by the Philadelphia 76ers. Barkley eventually ended up on the Phoenix Suns, but not before his agent thought a trade to the Lakers was all but done.
That transaction never came to pass, obviously, but Barkley explained the rollercoaster of emotions (and drinking) that the day took him during an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
Barkley might have been disappointed he wasn’t getting to play for the Lakers, but he jokingly said he still got to check a first off of his list by playing intoxicated.
As always, Barkley is just about the only player who cand admit to playing drunk and get away with it.
But it is intriguing to think about how good those early 90’s Lakers teams would have been with one of the best players in the NBA joining them. Unfortunately, the only way to get a look at it will be to simulate it in NBA 2K.
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