Charles Barkley declared the Boston Celtics dead after their Game 3 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at the TD Garden. Naturally, Sir Charles was feeling even more confident in that statement after the Bucks picked up a 113-101 victory over the Celtics in Game 4.
Barkley told his Inside The NBA co-hosts on Monday night, "The Milwaukee Bucks are going to win the world championship." Chuck had previously picked the Portland Trail Blazers to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals, meaning he's officially on the record as having Bucks over Blazers in June.
As a result of Monday night's victory, Milwaukee has now rattled off three straight wins against the Celtics and they'll have a chance to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals on their home court on Wednesday night.
Barkley's other NBA Finals pick, the Blazers, are currently tied 2-2 with the Nuggets heading into tonight's pivotal Game 5 in Denver.
“The Portland Trail Blazers are going to the NBA Finals. I’m doubling down on that,” Barkley proclaimed on Sunday night. “Whether its the Warriors or the Rockets [that they play in the Western Conference Finals]. The Portland Trail Blazers are going to the finals. Period.”
For those scoring at home, Barkley has also predicted that the Toronto Raptors will outlast the Philadelphia 76ers. Game 5 of that series, tied at 2-2, is scheduled to tipoff tonight at 8pm ET, airing on TNT.