Charles Barkley is always going to have a special place in the hearts of Philadelphia 76ers fans everywhere after his eight-year stint with the club that included six All-Star appearances.
But the now-56-year-old, who has carved his niche as an NBA analyst on TNT has never been afraid to hold his tongue. Even when it comes to breaking down his former team and, most notably, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
“Joel Embiid has got to get his fat butt in shape, and Ben Simmons has got to work on his game,” Barkley said on ESPN’s Get Up Tuesday morning.
“When I got to Philadelphia in 1984, the most important person in my life, basketball-wise, said to me ‘you fat and you lazy.’ And I said ‘what do you mean?’” Barkley continued.
“Moses Malone said ‘you fat and you lazy.’ He made me lose 50 pounds, and the rest is history. I wonder, in Philadelphia, who has the courage and the chutzpah to tell Joel Embiid ‘yo man, you’ve got to get in shape.’ I wonder if they have that person on the team, or the person who has to tell Ben Simmons ‘yo man, we just gave you $170 million dollars. Please go work on your jump shot.’”
It’s a straightforward suggestion even with things are looking up for the 76ers following their heartbreaking elimination from the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Despite losing Jimmy Butler and JJ Redick this summer, the Sixers still found a way to upgrade the roster. They signed Al Horford and picked up Josh Richardson from the Miami Heat in the sign-and-trade deal involving Butler.
On Monday, they secured the long-term future of Simmons by signing him to a max rookie-scale contract extension worth $170 million over five years.
It was a vote of confidence from GM Elton Brand despite there still being some concerns surrounding Simmons’ game.
Even with an All-Star selection, the 22-year-old continued to struggle with his jump shot, prompting many to question whether or not he is deserving of such a deal.
Regardless, he is the second budding Sixers cornerstone in the past two years to be bolstered down by the franchise.
Embiid was signed to a five-year, $147.7 million prior to the 2018-19 season.
Even though he’s shown the ability to perform at an MVP clip, there are still concerns about the 25-year-old’s longevity as injury and conditioning problems have remained a prevalent factor in his career.
Those issues most recently reared their head during the playoffs as Embiid’s playing time was limited throughout the first two rounds.
