The Oklahoma City Thunder are still basking in the glow of their recent NBA championship, which they won in seven games over the Indiana Pacers. Finals MVP, as well as the league MVP, both went to superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has staked a claim as one of the best players of his generation over the last couple of years.
Still, that isn't stopping NBA old heads like Charles Barkley from taking subtle jabs at him, and simultaneously somehow finding a way to include Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James in the discussion.
“The three best players I’ve ever seen are Michael [Jordan], Kobe [Bryant], and LeBron [James], and I’ll tell you the difference between the three. Michael and Kobe were dangerous. They will kill your a–. LeBron is a nice guy, and that’s not a knock,” said Barkley, per the Bill Simmons Podcast (via NBA Analysis and NBACentral on X, formerly Twitter). “He’s still great, great, great, but he’s a nice guy. Michael and Kobe weren’t nice guys. They’re different. The one thing about OKC, even though I think Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] is a great, great player. To me, he’s more like LeBron. He’s a really nice guy. He’s not out there trying to kill you.”
Another cliché claim from Charles Barkley
Older NBA fans have often used “fear,” “killer mentality,” and other easily disproven abstract concepts to explain why they admire Michael Jordan more than LeBron James, and it appears Gilgeous-Alexander has found his way into those conversations in the wake of the Thunder's title, which in some ways could be viewed as a sign of respect.
While there were numerous teams who clearly had no fear of Michael Jordan, including most notably the Detroit Pistons, the same cannot be said about Gilgeous-Alexander, who clearly got into the heads of the Minnesota Timberwolves and others en route to his first championship this spring.
The Thunder are bringing back essentially the same roster from last year and looked poised to contend for a repeat, although no reigning champion has made it out of the second round the following year since 2018.
In any case, the Thunder will tip off their season at home against the Houston Rockets on October 21.
