Las Vegas oddsmakers have installed the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks as betting favorites to win what many consider to be a wide-open Eastern Conference next season. However, NBA legend Charles Barkley is inclined to go against the grain — and the betting gods.
According to Barkley, the team that drafted him in the 1984 NBA Draft has the ability to pull off a stunner if one crucial condition is satisfied.
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“I think this is going to be a fascinating NBA season,”said Barkley during a Q&A at Rowan University recently. “I got zero idea who’s going to win the East. Zero. I mean, obviously, the Celtics are cooked without Tatum and Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. The Pacers are cooked without Myles Turner and Haliburton. The Knicks and Cavs are going to be favored. But let me say this. And this is a big damn if: If the Sixers could get healthy, they could win the East.”Â
Sixers’ fate depends on the health of PG and Embiid
The Sixers were supposed to be one of the East’s top dogs last season when they signed Paul George in free agency. PG was supposed to be the proverbial “final piece of the puzzle.” Still, he ended up playing only 41 games due to injuries. He was never the insurance policy they thought he would be in case Joel Embiid missed significant time due to his own injury woes.
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Embiid ended up playing only 19 games, and their projected Big 3 of Embiid, George, and Tyrese Maxey ended up playing only 15 games together while posting a 7-8 record. When all was said and done, the Sixers had the 5th-worst record in the league at 24-48 and missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2016-17 campaign.
George is expected to miss the start of training camp while recovering from a knee surgery in July. Meanwhile, Embiid also had knee surgery last April, and like George, there is no timetable for his return. If you ask the betting sites, the Sixers are currently long shots to win it all this year. That could change if both return healthy and productive. But as Barkley said, the Sixers’ success hinges on a big “if.”
Chuck had no hesitation in picking OKC out West
While Barkley is unsure about the East, he did not take too much time to pick the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, to come out of the West and represent the conference in the 2026 NBA Finals. OKC was the No.1 team in the league last season with 68 regular-season wins and beat the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the 2025 NBA Finals.
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“As far as the West, OKC is the team to beat. But the Rockets, with the addition of Kevin Durant, they gonna be tough, man. The Nuggets got the best player in the world in the Joker. They went out and got some help, finally. But I would still pick OKC. So man, it’s going to be fascinating watching basketball this year,” he added.
Barkley’s picks out West are pretty much the safe ones. OKC is the unanimous preseason favorite to do it all over again this season. Meanwhile, the Rockets did what experts said they had to do to go over the hump, and that was to add a go-to scorer. They did so by getting the best scorer possible. The Nuggets reloaded with a deeper team and a more formidable supporting cast around the Joker.
But the Sixers winning the East if PG and JoJo are healthy? That’s a brave prediction, but that’s also Chuck.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.