Kyle Kuzma called out some of the old guard, former NBA player analysts with this tweet a few days ago. If you’re not sure who he’s referring to, I’ll save you the suspense — it’s Barkley and Shaq. The point he’s making is simple: former NFL players turned analysts are more respectful of the current NFL players than their NBA counterparts. And the NFL guys add to your knowledge and teach the game.
He has a decent point. I love watching the TNT guys cover the NBA, but I agree that Chuck and Shaq can have an old man-style, “back in my day” vibe. The veterans on Inside The NBA do offer some game analysis, but it’s often peppered with enough personal criticism that it makes current players uncomfortable. Are modern players too soft and unable to handle the criticism? Or could the criticism perhaps be delivered in a more digestible manner?
Do you remember when Shaq had that awkward exchange with Donovan Mitchell? Take a look if you need a refresher. Here’s the quote: “You’re one of my favorite players, but you don’t have what it takes to get to that next level.” How exactly do you respond to that? Here you have an all-time great telling you that you’re constitutionally incapable, by nature, of getting to the next level of greatness. I imagine the answer Shaq wants to hear is, “Oh yeah? You’re wrong and I’ll prove it to you!” There are varying opinions about how to help people reach their potential, and oftentimes, hard conversations are necessary. If Shaq really loves Mitchell’s game and wants to motivate him to get better, I think there’s a better approach.
Take Draymond Green, for instance. Draymond is not a timid man. He’s been known to speak his mind a time or two. On his first appearance on Inside the NBA he immediately stood up to Barkley for a perceived slight. And let’s not forget that Barkley once said he’d like to punch Draymond in the face, but I digress.
Draymond is bold enough to offer criticism of players he currently plays against — here he is breaking down Jokic’s lackluster defensive effort during the Bubble. Listen to what he says, “This is an easy rotation here. It’s simple effort. Stop the ball.” It helps that Draymond is presenting tangible, video-backed evidence to illustrate his points. It helps that we’ve seen Draymond Green make rotations like this on auto-pilot for years. And it helps that he’s not presenting this as some interminable character flaw. Jokic simply has to put in the work.
“If they are going to win, he has to be better,” Draymond says in the video. It’s more than reasonable to say, it’s the truth. And sometimes the truth hurts.
Jokic still could’ve bristled at the criticism, blown it off and moved on. You can deliver a message in what may seem to be an ideal manner and there’s still another person receiving the message. But if I was a betting man, I’d say Kuzma favors Draymond’s approach, clear and direct, with an obvious solution, which also expands your knowledge of the game.
Analyzing the NBA is a difficult job. Even highly successful former players may not be skilled at teaching the finer points of the game. And if you add the challenge of trying to do it in real-time, you can get some pretty hilarious moments. I’m a big Kevin McHale fan, he’s funny and smart and seems like a genuinely great guy, but McHale’s hopelessly banal commentary at the end of a Celtics-OKC game makes me laugh out loud. If you need more evidence of why TNT canceled their “players only” broadcasts, let me present Exhibit B, starring Nate Robinson with a deer-in-the-headlights ad read.
I like Barkley’s honesty — he’s not afraid to speak his mind. I think Shaq can be funny. But I think they both can be better, both in terms of respecting modern players and adding some more educational value to their analysis. It’s hard to believe that I’m going to side with Kuzma, a guy who reportedly perceives himself to be on the same level as Jayson Tatum — but Ted Cruz is standing with Kyrie Irving. Who the hell knows what’s going on in the world anymore.