How Charles Barkley Revolutionized the Game

The “Charles Barkley Rule” was the catalyst for the evolution of centers and power forwards.

In the late 80s and early 90s, Charles Barkley was one of the most dominant power forwards in the NBA.

He was only standing at 6-6, but he possessed the strength and explosiveness of a 7-foot center.

He also had footwork like a guard.

Understanding his gifts, his main move was to back down his defender until he got close to the basket, then used his smooth footwork to slash to the rim for an easy bucket.

Barkley would make the defender absorb all of his weight and force before posterizing the poor fella.

He would often get an easy dunk (or layup) out of this or just get fouled.

He got so good at this move that in his fourth NBA season, he was averaging 28 points on 58.7 percent shooting. Then a few years later, in 1993, he won the MVP award.

Noticing how effective this play was, opposing coaches started to implement it.

This is one of the reasons why centers and power forwards dominated the 90s.