Barkley rightly says NBA would've 'mauled' Warriors 25 years ago
Nobody can beat the Golden State Warriors. Led by Stephen Curry, the Warriors are undefeated and could make NBA history by starting the season 16-0.
The Warriors are helping to usher in a new modern-era of the NBA with teams showing preference for three-pointers and faster pace offenses. The grind it out, physical style of basketball that was prevalent in the late '80s and '90s, no longer works nor allowed as the NBA has changed their rules to create a more free flowing game. However if the rules were never changed, Hall-of-Fame foward Charles Barkley believes that the Warriors would be constantly roughed up and wouldn't be as good as they are today.
From Barkley's appearance on FS1's "The Herd" on Wednesday:
Colin Cowherd: When you see Golden State, how would they play 25 years ago?
Barkley (via B/R): We would have just mauled them. You're not gonna let guys come off those picks. They changed the rules—it's kind of like the NFL where you can't touch the wide receiver. The defense is at a disadvantage, all these cornerbacks in the NFL are really at a disadvantage. And a guy like [Stephen Curry], who is amazing, you can't put your hands on him, you can't hand-check him. It's a totally different game.
Barkley is not wrong. Back when he played, that was just how the NBA was. Of course, the Warriors play now in 2015 so the reasoning behind this question seems kind of silly.
However, some teams still try and are physical with the Warriors. In the playoffs last season, the Grizzlies held a brief 2-1 lead in the second round over the Warriors, mainly because they grit-n-grinded against Golden State, playing physical and throwing Curry off his game just enough. The Los Angeles Clippers also try to use their size and strength when they play against Golden State. And in last year's Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers tried to wear down the Warriors with a physical style of play.
The Warriors still get pushed around but with players like Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut, they also dish it out too. Just because Curry looks "like a little baby" doesn't mean the Warriors are not a physical team. That's what makes the Warriors so successful, they play tough defense and are lights out on offense.
Barkley has discredited the Warriors in the past but he has also been a good sport about how successful they were last season. Which may be why he's not saying anything wrong or criticizing the Warriors in this instance.
