NBA legend Charles Barkley has doubled, no, tripled, witched, doubled down on his rating of the Portland Trail Blazers.
On TNT’s postgame show “Inside the NBA” Friday night, Barkley announced that the Blazers “are coming to the finals.”
Like in the NBA Finals. Barkley said this after reiterating his position last month that if the Blazers were the no. Getting 8-seeded in the playoffs of the Western Conference, they will defeat the Los Angeles Lakers, who this week ranked no. 1-seed stressed.
“If they get eighth place, they’ll beat the Lakers,” Barkley said Friday night.
Of course, this is a very bold statement. Only five times in NBA history has a no. 8-seed in no. 1-seed defeated in the NBA playoffs, dating back to 1984 when the NBA went to a 16-team playoff field.
The Blazers are currently in ninth place in the West after coming off a 3-1 start at the NBA bubble in Florida. It seems likely that they will at least make it to the play-in round for the eighth seed.
Clearly, Portland is a much better team at the moment than it was when the regular season was stopped in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The four-month hiatus allowed the Blazers to get back center Jusuf Nurkic and power forward Zach Collins. Also, backup guard Gary Trent Jr. has been a monster in Orlando, averaging 20.3 points off the bench compared to the 8.5 he averages for the season.
However, is everything enough for Portland (32-38) to beat a quiet LeBron James, who is paired with arguably the best big man in the game in Anthony Davis?
Barkley is certainly of opinion.
The conversation began when host Ernie Johnson jr. Barkley asked where he looked on Saturday.
“Watching my Portland Trail Blazers,” Barkley said.
The Blazers play second-placed Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday at 10 p.m.
“Let me tell you something,” Barkley continued. “They have the best backcourt in the NBA because both (Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson) are injured. You got Nurkic off the bench who can do it all. ”
Well, Nurkic has actually started all four games since his return, but OK, keep going, Charles …
“Gary Trent has been great,” Barkley added. ‘You entered Zach Collins. You have (Hassan) Whiteside blocking everything. They are big and strong. Listen, whoever plays that team, you’ll have to bring it. Flat and simple. ”
Betting on the Blazers to win the NBA Finals would be quite a bet. The Lakers are, according to Oddsshark.com, plus-210 to win the NBA Championship. The Blazers are plus-7000. That means a $ 100 bet on the Blazers to win the NBA Championship would pay $ 7,000 if they complete the mission.
One has to wonder if Barkley, known for enjoying gambling, has placed his money where his prediction regarding the Blazers is.
– Aaron Fentress | [email protected] | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook).
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