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Barkley: ‘The Miami Heat don’t scare anybody’
Charles Barkley versus the Miami Heat has practically been a television miniseries.
And now, the loquacious “Inside the NBA” analyst is at it again, this time with his perspective on the Heat’s impending first-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers.
“The Miami Heat don’t scare anybody,” he said during his Thursday appearance on TNT.
Barkley then noted the evolving antipathy between Heat All-Star forward Jimmy Butler and emerging Pacers scorer T.J. Warren.
“And Jimmy’s going to have to control his emotions,” Barkley said. “He’s the best player on that team. He’s a leader of that team, but if he’s going to spend all his energy going at T.J. Warren, that’s not going to work.
“Because when you’re the best player, you can’t get in foul trouble and you cannot get sidetracked. So to me, that’s a pick ’em.”
Barkley cited Pacers guard Victor Oladipo as a swing vote in the best-of-seven series that opens Tuesday at Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex in the void of fans, amid the new coronavirus pandemic.
“Well, it depends on Oladipo,” Barkley said. “He’s got to take over being the best player. Warren’s got to keep doing his thing.
“This is a tossup. I think Nate McMillan is probably the most underrated coach in the NBA. But to me, if Oladipo plays well, that’s a long, drawn-out series either way.”
Fellow analyst Kenny Smith noted the impact of the injury absence of Pacers All-Star forward Domantas Sabonis, who has been sidelined by a foot issue.
“Without Sabonis? No,” he said of the Pacers’ chances to win the series. “The way the Miami Heat are as a collective unit, you have to have everybody there . ... Very similar to what Toronto is — at every position they’re serviceable or very good.
“Without Sabonis, someone that you have to double-team, someone who rebounds on the offensive boards? Forget about what he does on offense. On the offensive boards, [where he’s] getting you extra shots, I think that’s a little bit too much to ask.”
Former Heat center Shaquille O’Neal, the show’s third analyst, also has the Heat.
“I like Miami because Miami’s just known for defense,” he said. “You can’t let this T.J. Warren guy average 30 or 40. They’ll bring him back down to earth where he was; I don’t even know where he was. I’m saying 15 to 20 points a game, then they should be able to win this.
“Indiana does have a chance to win a couple of games because they do have some talented players. But you can’t let a guy like T.J. Warren average 40.”