GOAT Index

Two legends at a time. Thousands of votes. One ranking.

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Charles Barkley: the case for the GOAT

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    Charles Barkley: the case for the GOAT

    Forward · 76ers, Suns · Born 20 February 1963, Leeds, Alabama, USA · Career 1984–2000

    'The Round Mound of Rebound', an undersized power forward of shocking strength and agility who starred for the 76ers and Suns and finished with the Rockets.

    Career highlights

    Why Charles Barkley could be the GOAT

    At about 6-foot-6, Barkley out-rebounded and out-muscled centres for 16 seasons. He beat out Jordan for the 1993 MVP and led the Suns to the Finals. Pound for pound, few players have been as productive or as unique.

    What fans say

    Charles Barkley is #24 of 30 in the fan ranking, with a 4–7 head-to-head record from 157 NBA votes. See the full NBA GOAT ranking

    Charles Barkley head to head

    How the ranking works. Every head-to-head vote is a result, like a game. The standings use a Bradley–Terry model, the same idea behind chess ratings: beating a highly rated legend counts for more than beating a long shot. Ratings are shown on a chess-style scale centred on 1500.

    One vote per matchup per person. If you see a pairing again in another session your new answer replaces the old one, so nobody can stuff the ballot by repeating a matchup.

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    Photo credits

      Photos come from Wikimedia Commons under the licenses listed. Each links to its source page.