Charles Barkley Apologizes To Lakers For Berating Them, Calls Them “Contenders”
Charles Barkley(L) and LeBron James(R) Credit: Imagn ImagesSomin BhattacharjeeSun, March 1, 2026 at 3:38 AM UTC·2 min readFortunes turn around in the NBA very quickly. The Los Angeles Lakers, after experiencing one of their most disappointing nights of the 2025/26 season against the Suns two days ago, look like they found their mojo back against the Warriors on Saturday. Charles Barkley lauded them albeit perhaps sarcastically, going back on his words from an hour prior.
Barkley had berated the Lakers, accusing them of tanking based on how woeful they were against a Phoenix Suns side that didn’t feature Devin Booker or Dillon Brooks. But teams have good and bad nights, and against the Warriors, we saw the Lakers’ good side.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAt their best, the purple and gold are contenders, and Barkley admitted to the same during broadcast of the matchup against Golden State.
“I want to apologize to Laker nation,” Barkley stated. “Y’all are contenders. Y’all are whooping the hell out of the Warriors. They won four championships and y’all making them look like they’re a G-league team… Y’all are serious contenders.”
The Lakers were indeed ripping the Warriors defense apart, and were barely getting threatened by their tame offense in the absence of Stephen Curry, Kristaps Porzingis, and Jimmy Butler. But Barkley’s assessment, like last time when he lashed out at the Lakers, was reactionary to say the least.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Warriors did win four titles under Curry, but that was a completely different team. Brandin Podziemski, De’Anthony Melton, and Gui Santos may be fighters and may get wins on the odd night, but they cannot go up against Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves when the Lakers trio is at its best.
In the Lakers’ last game, they lost to the Suns 113-110, and Barkley had ruthlessly said, “I get sick of people talking about they’re contenders. The Lakers are not a good team. I guess we’re contractually obligated to talk about them every day on our network now.”
On Sunday, the Lakers play the Sacramento Kings. If, by chance, they lost to one of the worst teams in the West, will Barkley once again go back on his words and start humiliating the Lakers side? If this trend continues, the answer would certainly be yes.
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