Charles Barkley Says You 'Can't Go Wrong' With Wiggins, Parker Or Embiid
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- When Charles Barkley speaks, everybody listens. Barkley, the 1993 NBA MVP and 10-time NBA all-star, played his first eight seasons in Philadelphia with the 76ers. Now, Barkley is an NBA analyst on 'Inside The NBA' on TNT and highly regarded as one of the most candid and honest sports broadcasters today.
Barkley joined the WIP Afternoon Show on Wednesday to talk about the NBA draft lottery, the upcoming NBA draft in June and the Sixers, among a variety of other topics including, Johnny Manziel.
LISTEN: Charles Barkley On The WIP Afternoon Show
"First off, I think this is one of the deepest drafts we've had in a long time," Barkley told Anthony Gargano and Rob Ellis on WIP Afternnons. "It's great for the Sixers."
The top three players expected to be first off the board are Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid, in no particular order.
Who would Barkley take first overall?
"Like, I'm not sure who I would take one [overall]," Barkley admitted. "Number one, I would want to make sure Embiid is healthy, but I got no problem with Wiggins or Parker to be honest with you. I think you get any one of those guys and I think your franchise is going in the right direction and I really mean it. I could see people taking Embiid and I can see Parker and Wiggins also. I don't think you can go wrong on either one of the three."
The Sixers have the third and tenth overall picks in the 2014 NBA draft. Barkley says he loves the direction of the Sixers.
"I think they've (the 76ers) played their hand perfectly," Barkley said. "I love everything they've done. They're going to get [Nerlens] Noel back next year. They've got the rookie of the year. They've got three—excuse me, two top-ten picks. Everything is good right now, awesome job by the Sixers."