Shaq and Charles Barkley disagree over NBA Finals prediction despite injuries during last Inside the NBA of the year
CHARLES Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal have butted heads for the final time in the 2023-24 NBA season, disagreeing on their favorites for the championship.
ESPN is the home of the NBA Finals, which will begin on June 6 and see the Dallas Mavericks take on the Boston Celtics.
TNT/NBAShaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley butted heads again during the last Inside the NBA episode of the 2023-24 NBA season[/caption]
TNT/NBABarkley tipped the Boston Celtics to win the 2024 NBA Finals even if they have to play without Kristaps Porzingis[/caption]
TNT/NBABut Shaq went with Luka Doncic and his Dallas Mavericks[/caption]
And so TNT’s Inside the NBA shut down for the season after the Western Conference Finals concluded with the Mavericks’ 124-103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 on Thursday night.
Before the feel-good crew signed off, they gave their predictions for the Dallas-Boston series.
And Barkley, 61, went with the Celtics — even though they’ve been playing without starting center Kristaps Porzingis for a month.
“I still haven’t seen anything to make me think the Celtics are not going to win the championship,” Chuck said.
“Without Porzingis, I still like the Celtics.”
Barkley noted the Celtics have four players who could guard Mavericks All-Star duo of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
Those are Jrue Holiday and Derrick White as well as Boston’s own superstar pair, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
“I think it’s going to be a hell of a series,” the TNT analyst added.
O’Neal, 52, disagreed with the notion that the Celtics have four defenders capable of containing Doncic.
He then tipped Dallas to win it all.
“I like the way they’re playing,” Shaq said.
O’Neal added the series should be “a little special” for Irving and Porzingis considering their past with Boston and Dallas, respectively.
As the Inside the NBA panel bid farewell to viewers, Barkley made another joke about TNT’s potentially losing TV rights to the league’s games.
“I cannot wait for next season. It’s gonna be a blast,” host Ernie Johnson said.
NBA Western Conference playoffs
First Round
Oklahoma City Thunder (1) 4-0 New Orleans Pelicans (8)Los Angeles Clippers (4) 2-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 4-0 Phoenix Suns (6)Denver Nuggets (2) 4-1 Los Angeles Lakers (7)
Conference Semifinals
Oklahoma City Thunder (1) 2-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 4-3 Denver Nuggets (2)
Conference Finals
Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 1-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)
In response, Chuck asked to clarify whether Johnson said “blast” or “last” before releasing a loud chuckle.
TNT’s current TV deal with the NBA expires after the next season.
And it looks like NBC might snatch the Warner Bros. Discovery network’s game package with a bid worth between $2.5-2.6 billion.
That would likely spell the end for Inside the NBA after over 30 seasons.
Barkley has been outspoken about the possibility of a TNT-NBA breakup and the potential layoffs it could entail.
Chuck’s candor has reportedly led to tensions among the cast.
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