Basketball Hall of Famer and current NBA on TNT anchor Charles Barkley was not a fan of Oklahoma City Thunder Steven Adams' hard pick on Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard on Tuesday night.
Barkley seemed to take exception of the stonewall screen, and even went as far as labeling Adams' antics as “bush league” after the game:
Charles Barkley: “I would never let anybody hit Kevin Johnson” the way Steven Adams hit Damian Lillard on that pick.
“That’s Bush League.” #RIPCITY
— 👑 Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) April 17, 2019
It was indeed a pretty gruesome screen, but in truth, there was actually nothing illegal about it. Here's a look at the exact moment Lillard ran into a wall of a man:
Running into a Steven Adams screen looks unpleasant pic.twitter.com/qRSZ85gyeV
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) April 17, 2019
Adams actually just stood his ground and did not appear to push off Lillard. It just so happened that the Blazers superstar had no idea that Adams was standing there as he was absolutely blindsided on the play.
As for Barkley, he obviously did not like what he saw from Adams, and even implied that he might have done something about it if this same thing happened to a teammate of his.
Nevertheless, it was Lillard and company who took the victory in their Game 2 matchup against the Thunder. A huge third quarter allowed the Blazers to pull away and secure a 114-94 win that put them ahead 2-0 in the series.
Lillard did not appear to be shaken up by the play and finished the contest with 29 points (on 10-of-21 shooting), four 3-pointers, four rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks.
Game 3 is slated to commence on Friday night, with the series shifting to Oklahoma City. The Thunder will be looking to win both games at home in order for them to tie the series at two games apiece.
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