Considering he's one of the greatest Phoenix Suns players of all time, it came as a bit of a surprise for some that Charles Barkley decided to pick Giannis Antetokounmpo and his Milwaukee Bucks to win the title in the NBA Finals. Barkley himself opened up about this bit of irony in a recent interview, and he also had a strong message to any Giannis naysayer left out there.
Speaking to Mark Medina of USA TODAY, Barkley revealed that in his heart, he was cheering for the Suns. However, as a basketball analyst, he knew that the Bucks held the advantage. Giannis proved to be just that, and for his part, Barkley has decided to call out any of the Greek Freak's haters:
“It was amazing. I was really happy for Chris Paul and happy for my city. Living in Arizona, those people were awesome,” Barkley said. “But Milwaukee was the better team. When I picked Milwaukee to win the series, it was painful for me. I wanted to pick the Suns. But I just didn’t see how the Suns can beat those guys. If you’re not happy for Giannis Antetokounmpo, there’s something wrong with you. He represents everything that is great about basketball.”
Excellent point from Sir Charles here. Antetokounmpo's rise to fame is nothing short of legendary. The journey he took from being a young boy living in poverty in Greece to becoming an NBA champion with the Milwaukee Bucks is simply the stuff of fairy tales. It's hard to comprehend how some people can still hate on a guy like Giannis, and for these folks, it wouldn't be a good idea to cross paths with Charles Barkley.
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