“You had Moses Malone”: Gilbert Arenas gives harsh reality check to Charles Barkley’s leadership criticism on Kevin Durant 

Over the years, Charles Barkley has been one of the main critics of Kevin Durant. He's called out the former MVP in the past for not being the "bus driver" of his best teams. Recently, another former All-Star called out the Hall of Fame forward for not being a top leader on his own teams.

During a recent episode of the "Nightcap" podcast, Shannon Sharpe and Gilbert Arenas discussed Barkley's recent comments about KD being a follower. The three-time All-Star broke down Barkley's resume, stating he wasn't much of a leader himself.

Arenas brought up that Charles Barkley had Moses Malone when he first joined the Philadelphia 76ers. Then he went to the Phoenix Suns, who were already an established team before he arrived.

"Charles, Barkley resume didn't scream out leadership either, right? You know, you had Moses Malone over there when you went to the, you know, Western, the East Conference. He was Dr. J and Mo. Yeah. So you wasn't leading that team, right? You wasn't leading the team," Arenas said.

You went to the Phoenix Suns who won 50 something games every year before you got there, right? So they already had leadership. Your first year there, you go to the finals, you win your MVP because of their record."

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Charles Barkley speaks on impact of Moses Malone's leadership

While Charles Barkley might feel Kevin Durant is a follower, he too was a benefactor of good leadership during his NBA career. On countless occasions, he's talked about the massive impact Moses Malone had on his career.

Coming out of college, Barkley was extremely overweight. He was frustrated at his lack of playing time, and sought out Malone for guidance. The Philadelphia 76ers star big man told him he needed to lose weight, and offered to help him. Barkley has cited this interaction as one of the key things that turned him into a star-level player.

"This guy helped me lose 50 pounds and turned me into an All-Star and a Hall of Famer," Barkley said.

Barkley spent eight years with the 76ers, where he averaged 23.3 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He'd eventually depart for the Phoenix Suns and win an MVP award along with get to play in the NBA Finals.

Stories like this only back up the point that Arenas was trying to make with Shannon Sharpe. Seeing how other player's leadership completely changed Barkley's career, he shouldn't be so hard on someone like KD. Without Malone there to get him in shape, there is no telling how things would have played out for him.