As the hosts of SiriusXM Radio’s Sunday NBA Tip were about to ask for his take on the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charles Barkley interjected to steer the conversation to what he called “one of the most perplexing things that I’ve seen in my 30 years in the NBA.”
What's bothering Barkley?
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“Why does the world hate Kevin Love?” Barkley asked Noah Coslov and Howard Beck.
“It drives me freakin’ nuts,” he said. “... Every time they win, it’s the Big Three and everything is great; and every time they lose, ‘Oh, Kevin Love doesn’t fit in.’“
“... It really bothers me, this negative criticism of Kevin Love, like this guy can’t play. ... All of a sudden, every time they lose, it’s his fault, and I have no idea why.”
Barkley went on to say Cavs coach Tyronn Lue made a mistake not starting Love in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, which the Warriors won 108-97 to take a 3-1 series lead. Love missed Game 3 with a concussion.
“Richard Jefferson (who started in place of Love in games three and four) looked tired last game — he pretty much shot it in Game 3 — and it puts LeBron (James) and Kyrie (Irving) in an awkward situation on offense at times because you can’t pass the ball to Tristan Thompson, because he’s not a scorer.
“If you watched that game closely, there was a couple of times LeBron and Kyrie made moves and kicked the ball to Tristan and he was like, ‘What the hell am I gonna do with this ball?’ He’s a great rebounder, he’s a heck of a player, but you need guys out there that can hammer the boards and can get you points in the paint.”
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Love “had nothing to do with (the Cavs) winning or losing (Game 3),” Barkley added. “J.R. Smith and Kyrie played great. That was the difference. And the headline was ‘Do we start Kevin Love next game.’ And I’m like, ‘Wait a minute! Kyrie and J.R. made shots. How does that have anything to do with whether we should start Kevin Love? It made me laugh sitting back from a distance.”
He had another example of hate for Love.
DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry combined for 67 points in Cleveland’s Game 4 loss to Toronto in the Eastern Conference finals, “and you know what the headline was?,” Barkley asked rhetorically. “’Kevin Love didn’t play well.’ And I’m like, ‘What! Is he guarding DeRozan and Kyle Lowry?’”
Barkley offered this advice to the power forward:
”If I’m Kevin Love, I sit down with (Cavaliers management) this summer and say, ‘Hey listen, if it’s gonna to be like this every year, where I’m just gonna get the blame and no credit, can y’all please trade me, because I don’t need this in my life. I’m a good player.’”
Barkley added while it’s way too soon for the Cavs to blow up their roster — after all, they have made the Finals two years in a row and are the heavy favorites to win the East again next season — he did like a trade idea floated by the hosts: Love to the Celtics for Jae Crowder, Avery Bradley and the No. 3 pick in the June 23 NBA Draft.
“Yeah, I might to that deal, that’s a win-win,” he said “... I’m a big Jae Crowder fan, I like Avery Bradley and the No. 3 pick? Yeah, I’d do that deal. That’s a win-win for both teams.”