Regular viewers of “Inside the NBA” are well aware that Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal do not necessarily agree on a lot of things. On Thursday, however, they were in alignment regarding what they saw as a glaring All-Star snub.
The “Inside the NBA” crew was tasked with announcing the reserves for both the Eastern and Western Conference All-Stars, and then weighed in on the selections afterward. When Barkley was asked about the biggest snub, he immediately singled out Los Angeles Clippers guard Norman Powell.
“A guy like this, he’s been a really good player in this league for a long time. He’s having a career year. He’s been the second-best player on the Clippers,” Barkley said. “That team has shocked everybody. … I would love to see him get rewarded. I feel bad, but I love Norman Powell.”
Shaq was begrudgingly in agreement.
“I would painfully say I have to agree with Chuck. (Powell)’s playing excellent basketball. Guys like that should be rewarded,” Shaq said. “Whether he makes it or not, he’s definitely an All-Star in my eyes.”
Clippers guard Norman Powell was not named a 2025 NBA All-Star.
Charles Barkley and Shaq both said Norm is their bigger snub.
Chuck: “A guy like this who has been a really good player for a long time. He's having a career-year. He's been the 2nd best player on the Clippers.… pic.twitter.com/eNgvcGvLm9
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) January 30, 2025
Shaq and Barkley are friends, but they very much enjoy needling each other and can have wildly different opinions. It is easy to see why they would be in alignment on Powell, however. The veteran guard is averaging 24 points per game while shooting 43.5 percent from three, and he is doing it on a Clippers team that generally was not expected to be as good as they have been thus far.
Ultimately, it was tough to pick the West reserves, which include huge names like Anthony Edwards, Anthony Davis, James Harden, and Victor Wembanyama. Still, many would have liked to see Powell find his way onto the roster.
