| | CHICAGO -- Julius Erving knew Charles Barkley was back in Philadelphia on Wednesday night for his final goodbye.
He had no reason to believe it would be his last game.
|  | | Barkley returns to the court on crutches after an injury in the first quarter Wednesday. |
Barkley's quadriceps injury in the first half of the Sixers-Rockets game -- which he said will end his career -- left his former teammate saddened.
Sitting courtside at college basketball's Great Eight at the United Center, Erving was shocked to learn that Barkley's 16-year career had ended, ironically in the same city where it began when he came out of Auburn in 1984.
"That's not the way you want a career to end for any athlete," said Erving, who played with Barkley for three years in Philadelphia. "I consider Charles like a younger brother. I knew he wanted this to be his last year but he wanted to go out in style, not like this."
Barkley spent 16 seasons (eight in Philadelphia, four in Phoenix and Houston) creating his own position inside, despite being an undersized forward. He was listed at 6-6, but is considered closer to 6-4.
"People need to be honest and say that they questioned whether he could play the way he did when he was coming out of college," said Pete Babcock, Atlanta's director of player personnel. "But once he did, you knew he would be successful."
Babcock said he tried to sign Barkley a year ago before the Rockets added Scottie Pippen. Babcock didn't care that Barkley was nearing the end of his career.
"From the day he entered the league to the day he left, there was never one guy who could guard him," said Dick Versace, who coached against Barkley during stops at Indiana, Milwaukee and Detroit. "It didn't matter if the defender had size, strength or long arms. No one could come up with a way to guard him."
Barkley's ability to handle the ball on the perimeter, post-up inside and shoot 3-pointers made him a favorite of NBA Hall of Fame guard Jerry West.
"He was unique," said West, the Los Angeles Lakers' general manager. "He was always a great player in this league but I thought he was underappreciated. We'll miss him. He's one of the great competitors this league has ever seen."
West said he doens't think Barkley shouldn't be remembered for his trash-talking or off-court behavior. Neither does Erving.
"Charles was a one-man wrecking crew," Erving said. "He could take over the game by rebounding the ball and hitting a high-percentage shot. He was the type of superstar who made other players better."
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. | |
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Charles Barkley ruptures a tendon in his knee.
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RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
 Charles Barkley says his career was over before the season started.
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