How Did Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley Fair in Their NBA Debuts? Is a Player?s First Game Always a Sign of Things to Come?

Victor Wembanyama recently made his NBA debut with the San Antonio Spurs against the Dallas Mavericks. In 23 minutes of play, the rookie had 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. Interestingly, his numbers were eerily similar to Spurs legend Tim Duncan’s debut. The Hall of Famer also had 15 points and 2 assists. Furthermore, both Duncan and Wembanyama went 6-for-9 shooting from the field. Wembanyama has been compared to Duncan for some time now. So the Frenchman’s identical debut stats have made the fans excited. The Spurs fans are hopeful that Victor can emulate Duncan’s success. This got us wondering whether a debut is always a signal of things to come in the league. Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley are two of the best players ever who also happened to be from the same draft class. So let us look at how they did in their first appearance and how their careers turned out while also looking at other historic debuts.

Charles Barkley’s debut and first year in the league

Charles Barkley is one of the best power forwards the league has ever seen. Despite being undersized for the position, Barkley was a force to be reckoned with. I mean the guy was called The Round Mound of Rebound during a time when the boards were dominated by huge centers and PFs. The Hall of Famer could score at will as well. Especially in transition, Barkley did a lot of damage and he was unguardable. While not winning a championship will always be a stain in his career, there is no denying that Barkley had a legendary career. But how well did he do in his debut?

The 1984 draft class is considered one of the best ever and has some legendary players. There was a major hype around Charles after his impressive performances for the Auburn Tigers. The Philadelphia 76ers selected him as the 5th overall pick. Interestingly, Barkley was not very keen to join the 76ers. The management had some doubts about his weight as well. Barkley then gained more weight.

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So even after the gruesome training camp, Barkley wasn’t necessarily in his best shape. In his first game, Barkley faced the Cleveland Cavaliers on October 26, 1984. According to StatMuse, he played 27 minutes off the bench and had 11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. The Sixers won the game 111-101. Barkley’s numbers were good for a debut. However, he was only getting started. He finished the season with 14 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1 block per game as per ESPN.

The first official game of Michael Jordan and rookie season

Many consider Michael Jordan the GOAT of basketball. He led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA titles with two three-peats. Similar to Charles Barkley, Jordan had a huge hype around him after his successful college career with the North Carolina Tar Heels. However, it was not as huge as the anticipation around LeBron James or Victor Wembanyama after they declared for the draft. Very few believed MJ should be the #1 pick. It was an era of dominant centers and big men were always in demand.

The first two picks were centers: Hakeem Olajuwon to the Houston Rockets and Sam Bowie to the Portland Trail Blazers. The Bulls selected Jordan as the third pick. The Hall of Famer was raring to go. The Bulls immediately understood MJ was going to be the future in their very first training. Jordan dominated his teammates in practice and they were no match for his athleticism.

Similar to Barkley, MJ also made his debut on October 26, 1984, when the Bulls faced the Washington Bullets. Contrary to Barkley, Jordan was a starter. He finished the game with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 blocks, and 2 steals. The Bulls won the game 109-93. The rookie played the most minutes for the Bulls with 40. He wasn’t extremely efficient from the field and went 5 for 16.

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However, that did not stop him from an unreal rookie season. Jordan comfortably clinched the Rookie of the Year award averaging 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 2.4 steals per game as per ESPN. It is the 6th highest scoring average by a rookie.

How did players with some of the best debuts fair?

There have been some legendary debuts in the league. Notably, NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain has the most points in a debut with 43 as per Sporting News. He was the first and still the only player to break the 40-point mark in the first appearance. He went on to have a legendary rookie season as well averaging 37.6 points, most by a huge margin. Walt Bellamy is second on the list with 31.6. Chamberlain had a stellar career as well and holds the 7th spot in All-Time scoring (31,419) and the 1st spot in rebounds (23,924) as per ESPN.

Other NBA legends like Isiah Thomas (31 points), Allen Iverson (31 points), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (29 points), Bellamy (29 points), and Magic Johnson (26 points) are also on the top-25 best debut list. They have all gone on to have incredible rookie seasons and careers in their own right. Notably, Abdul-Jabbar is 2nd on the All-Time scoring (38,387), 3rd in rebounds (17,440), and 3rd in blocks (3,189). Bellamy is 12th in rebounds (14,241). While Magic is 7th in assists (10,141) Isiah holds the 10th spot (9,061). For steals, Iverson is 14th (1,983), Thomas 17th (1,861), and Johnson 23rd (1,724).

But there are 19 other players who have 26 points or more on their debuts. Among them, three are currently playing: Paolo Banchero, Chris Duarte, and P.J. Washington. Interestingly, all three scored 27 points in their first game. While Banchero won the ROY award, Duarte and Washington are struggling. Among the remaining 16 players, no player is in the top 25 for points, rebounds, assists, steals, or blocks. However, that doesn’t mean they had a poor career. But it was not great!

Other than four players in the 16, the remaining had decent careers winning accolades and All-Star selections. However, interestingly, Lamar Odom is the only player to win an NBA title.

What do Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley’s legendary careers teach us?

Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan did not have an outstanding first game. However, their numbers were still decent for a debut. Also, most fans don’t expect a lot more from rookies on their first-ever appearance as there is a lot of emotion involved.

Barkley is one of the few players to have more than 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, and 4,000 assists in a career. He was an 11x All-Star and won the All-Star MVP and regular season MVP once. At 6’6″, he was the shortest player to win a rebounding title. He currently sits 19th in the All-Time leading rebounders list.

Similarly, Jordan is 5th in scoring with 32,292 points and 4th in steals with 2,514. He is tied with the legendary Bill Russell in second place for MVPs with 5, only behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 6. He has the most Finals MVPs with 6. MJ was a 14x All-Star and won the All-Star MVP award thrice. He also won the Defensive Player of the Year award once. Furthermore, Jordan is tied with Wilt Chamberlain for most scoring titles with 10. He has also won the steals title thrice.

Few would have predicted that Barkley and Jordan would have a legendary career after their first game. Sure, most fans knew they would obviously improve. On the other hand, the expectation on the biggest scorers on their debuts would have been massive. However, most of them did not live up to it. So it is safe to say that a debut is not always a clear sign of things to come. But sometimes it is! Chamberlain’s 43-point debut for example.

Editorial Disclaimer:?The?views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of EssentiallySports.