Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith form the the NBA veteran component of the “Inside the NBA” panel. Likely inspired by ESPN’s Top 100 Player Rankings, the TNT trio did something different this season; releasing their top 50 NBA player rankings for the upcoming 2024-25 season. We’re waiting on Ernie Johnson’s list!

These rankings, although obviously subjective, reflect each analyst’s criteria: Barkley focused on versatility, Shaq leaned into winning, and Smith evaluates six key factors, including leadership and defense.

Charles Barkley’s Top 50 Players

Charles Barkley is known for being outspoken — and according to some — doesn’t know very much about basketball.  And his recent ranking of the top 50 NBA players for the 2024-25 season highlights these perceptions of him. We’ve all become very familiar with Barkley’s mouth and this time it was used to  rank players with a strong emphasis on players who can impact games in multiple ways. At least that was consistent with his selection of Nikola Jokić, whom he ranked as the best player due to his all-around game. After Barkley’s top five players?  Well, we’ll let you be the judge. Here’s Charles Barkley’s NBA player rankings for the upcoming NBA season.

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One player that Kenny, Shaq and Chuck didn’t have different opinions on were Nikola Jokić. The three-time MVP  topped all three lists with his impressive 2023-24 campaign, where he averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9 assists. The Joker’s versatility as a scorer, rebounder, and passer solidified his position as the league’s top player. Jokic was followed by Luka Dončić and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Barkley ranked Jrue Holiday 35th. Holiday’s defensive prowess and Ingram’s all-around offensive game make them valuable to their teams.

Chuck’s Top-20 NBA Players pic.twitter.com/TFk9L7nhwB

— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) October 21, 2024

Young talents like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (9th) and Paolo Banchero (16th) have also sparked debate — with the former being too low and the latter being ranked too high. Gilgeous-Alexander had a  breakout season last season with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Banchero’s strong start with the Orlando Magic reflect their growing status among the NBA’s elite. Barkley ranking Victor Wembanyama at #22 just before Kristaps Porziņģis at #23 was also controversial. The biggest controversy of Chuck’s rankings? Isaiah Hartenstein ranked at #48 whereas James Harden can’t be found on Barkley’s list. Then Derrick White at #40,  Naz Reid at#41 and Tyler Herro #42. Are they all better than NBA All-Star Donovan Mitchell (#43)?

Ultimately, these rankings from Barkley (as well as Shaq and Kenny) shows that even former NBA players have really, really different opinions based on really different criterion on who the top players in the league.