Citizen Brandon Liebhaber isn't the only one that's feeling this way about Barkley's fascination with Memphis and dismissal of the Clippers. In the end, it's one man's (uninformed) opinion, but if you want to chime in on it, I thought I'd promote this FanPost as a place to have the discussion. Steve

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Unfortunately, I had to work during the Clipper game last night so I only got home in time to see Lakers/Heat on TNT. After that game ended, I decided to stick around for Inside the NBA to see the highlights of the Clipper game and hear what the guys had to say about the Clips. I do not have high expectations for the analysis on TNT. Like most, I watch for the entertainment and production value. Most analysts these days do not back up their assertions with facts, but Charles Barkley's thoughts on the Clippers last night still really annoyed me.

For the second time this season, he put the Clippers behind Oklahoma City, San Antonio, and Memphis. A few weeks ago, he said that Memphis would beat the Clippers in a seven game series. Let's look at facts and see if there is any basis for Chuck's points.

First off, the Clippers have already beaten Memphis in a seven game series. And that was last year's team..That team severely lacked the depth they have this year and Chris Paul was limping around the court by the end of that series. What has changed since then? Not much for Memphis. They're fourth in the West, which is where they finished last year. They have basically the same team. The Clippers, on the other hand, have added Lamar Odom, Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, and others to give them the best bench in the league. So Chuck is saying that a Clippers team that has already beaten Memphis in a seven game series and has vastly improved since then could not do it again.

Lets get to this year. If you want to put the Clippers behind Oklahoma City, I'm not going to argue with you. So I'll give Chuck that. But I don't get how anyone could make a valid argument to putting the Clippers behind San Antonio or Memphis at this point. San Antonio is a very good team and Gregg Popovich is still an evil genius. But the Clippers are 2-0 against San Antonio this year, including a win in Texas. The Clippers have a better record than San Antonio. So how exactly can you say that the Spurs are better than the Clippers right now?

The thing that really bothered me was the nerve of Chuck to put the Clippers behind Memphis. Like most on this blog, I do not really understand the love affair most NBA analysts are in with Memphis. They're a solid team, but nothing special. And there is absolutely no statistical basis for putting the Clips behind Memphis in any rankings whatsoever. The Clippers' record is 5.5 games better than Memphis' mark. The Clippers have beaten Memphis this year twice by nine points or more. Four days ago, the Clippers beat the Grizzlies in Memphis by 26 and they did not have Chris Paul. How can anyone who has watched the Clippers this season put them behind Memphis?

I know I should not get that angry at a guy who makes a living saying ridiculous things on air. But his statements had absolutely no factual basis whatsoever. Is Charles Barkley just trolling us? Is he simply ignorant of facts? Does he not actually watch the games he covers? Have I spent too many words on Charles Barkley? Probably, but I'm not around too many Clipper fans and I needed to vent.