Charles Barkley Says Rockets’ James Harden Is Best 1-on-1 Player He’s Ever Seen

Ashley Landis/Associated Press

Charles Barkley had the NBA on TNT crew rattled Tuesday night with his latest comments on James Harden.

While discussing the guard’s abilities during halftime of Game 1 between the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder, Barkley said Harden is the “best one-on-one player I’ve ever seen in my life.”

The take immediately caused a stir on set with Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal immediately firing back.

“Stop it,” O’Neal shot back. “Don’t say ‘in your life.’ Stop it. I’m helping you out. Stop it.”

Barkley was undeterred and fell back on how Harden has helped usher in the current era of basketball, pointing specifically to his ability from behind the arc.

Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant were both brought up in response. Barkley was unimpressed, sticking to his beliefs, and though Smith would go on to compliment Harden’s scoring ability, he had to recuse himself from the rest of the conversation.