"More Clark Kent than Superman": Charles Barkley's comments on LeBron James being only great rookie has Shaquille O'Neal fuming

NBA legends and Basketball Hall-of-Famers Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal had a lively interaction once again on NBA on TNT that left the latter fuming. It stemmed from the 1993 league MVP’s assertion that LeBron James was the only great rookie in NBA history.

The panel was discussing the game between the San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns on Tuesday and how rookie Victor Wembanyama fared when James’ name was brought up.

Charles Barkley shared that while the Spurs rookie has a great skills set he does not see him dominating in his first year the way James did in his first year in the league.

Disagreeing with the take of his TV colleague, Shaquille O’Neal cut Barkley and said he considers himself as a dominant rookie. Chuck, however, was quick to qualify that Shaq did not come out of high school, which somehow appeased the legendary center.

Charles Barkley said:

“There’s only one guy that came in and was great right away, and it was LeBron. Kobe [Bryant] struggled. Kevin Garnett struggled… He (Shaq) was more of Clark Kent than Superman… I was talking that you didn’t dominate [right away].”

Check out their back-and-forth below, beginning at 6:20:

For comparison, James averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 79 games while leading the Cavaliers to a 35-47 record in his first year in the NBA in the 2003-04 season. Cleveland improved on its previous record of 17-65.

O’Neal, for his part, had rookie numbers of 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocks in 81 games in the 1992-93 season with the Orlando Magic. They finished with 41-41 record that year but missed the playoffs.

Meanwhile, Wembanyama helped the Spurs beat the Suns, 115-114, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocks in 28 minutes. San Antonio improved to 2-2 for the season after the win.

Charles Barkley believes there is still a long way to go for Spurs rookie Wembanyama

NBA legend Charles Barkley believes there is still a long way to go for San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama in being the dominant player many see he is going to be.

He shared this in an episode of the Behind The Mask podcast earlier this year, highlighting how young players still have a lot to learn when they step on the NBA.

‘Sir Charles’ said:

“Nobody knows how to play in the NBA at 18, 19 years old. They played their whole life on talent. They just played their whole career on talent. You’re not getting probably great coaching in high school. You’re getting good coaching in college, but you’re better than 99 percent of the players.”

Charles Barkley added:

“When you get to the NBA, you ain’t better than nobody. You can’t be a great player unless you know how to play. Any kid who thinks he’s gonna come to the NBA right now says, ‘I’m gonna outrun LeBron or Giannis or Devin Booker or Jimmy Butler or Trae Young. They’re like, ‘I’m gonna out-talent those guys.’ They’re just nuts. You gotta learn how to play.”

In four games to date in the young NBA season, 19-year-old Wembanyama has been averaging 16.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks for the 2-2 Spurs.