“Pass that big old ugly dude”: Charles Barkley mocks Shaquille O’Neal as Kevin Durant inches closer to surpassing ex Laker on scoring list
Kevin Durant recently took another step toward furthering his legacy on the court, passing Elvin Hayes for 11th place on the all-time scoring list.It was a special moment for Durant, who has been widely regarded as one of the best scorers not only in his era but in all of NBA history.
With 27,331 points to his name, Durant now finds himself within striking distance of tenth place. Sitting just ahead of him in the standings is Moses Malone, with 27,409 points.
Given Durant's scoring output, barring any injuries, it's only a matter of time before he moves up. The question, of course, is how far up the list Durant can move before retirement.
While he has scored at an impressive clip, he still finds himself in several positions outside of the elusive 30,000-point club, which only a few players have reached. After the Suns' Tuesday-night win over the Portland Trail Blazers, Charles Barkley and the NBA on TNT crew weighed in.
As he often does, Charles Barkley took the opportunity to crack jokes about the situation, getting in a dig at his longtime friend and colleague Shaquille O'Neal.
"Shoutout to Moses Malone, miss you man. One of the best ever. ... Come on Kevin, pass that big old ugly dude soon."
Check out the clip below.
Looking at Kevin Durant's place on the all-time scoring list, will he pass Shaquille O'Neal?
As previously mentioned, Kevin Durant has made impressive strides toward cementing his place among the greatest scorers of all time. With Moses Malone’s 10th-place spot within arms reach, it’s only a matter of time before he moves up the list once more.
Sitting just over 1,000 points ahead of Durant on the NBA’s all-time scoring list is Shaquille O’Neal. The four-time NBA champion and Hall of Famer sits in eighth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring leaders list with 28,596 points, nearly 1,500 points shy of the 30,000 club.
Using his career average of 27.3 points per game, Durant would be able to surpass O'Neal this season. As such, it sounds as though, the way things stand, Charles Barkley will get to see Kevin Durant pass Shaquille O'Neal on the list this season.
The difference between O'Neal in eighth place and Wilt Chamberlain in seventh place, however, will be a tougher task for the elite scorer. While less than 2,000 points separate Durant at No. 11 and O'Neal at No. 8, Wilt Chamberlain is just shy of 3,000 points ahead of O'Neal with 31,149.
Given that, while Kevin Durant may be able to surpass Shaquille O'Neal this season, chances are he will need at least one more season before potentially cracking the 30,000 club.