The NBA on TNT crew made its 2024 debut on Thursday night, and it didn’t take long for Charles Barkley to offer up some criticism of the Golden State Warriors.
At halftime of the Warriors’ tilt against the reigning champion Denver Nuggets, Barkley reiterated his previous claim that Golden State aren’t contenders for a championship this season.
The analyst questioned the team’s aging core, saying that Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are past their primes and that Stephen Curry is no longer able to mask their lack of production.
“One thing you know about old people, they just get older, they don’t get better. Sports are a young people’s game,” said Barkley. “As much as I love Klay, he’s past his prime. Same thing with Dray.”
“That’s why they’re gonna be streaky. And Steph usually could cover that up. But he can’t anymore because he’s starting to wear down,” added Barkley.
Charles Barkley on Warriors not being a contender pic.twitter.com/CbD8IluNrm
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Not only is Barkley counting the Warriors out as contenders, he questioned whether the franchise would even make the playoffs. Heading into Thursday night’s game against the Nuggets, Golden State sat in 11th in the Western Conference at 16–17.
As for Shaquille O’Neal, he wasn’t ready to count out the Warriors, and he chimed in to say as much at the end of Barkley’s rant.
