With the series tied at two games apiece, fans and analysts were split right down the middle over who would take Game 5 between the Dallas Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder. While the majority of fans rooting for their favorite players or team in this Western Conference Semifinals series, Charles Barkley’s guarantee regarding the Thunder squad got hilariously mocked by Luka Doncic on national television.
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The Dallas Mavericks took the fifth game of this seven-game series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, taking a 3-2 lead going forward. An exceptional performance from Luka Doncic, the Slovenian star had a witty response to Barkley’s claim after winning the game.
Shortly after handing the Thunder a loss on the road, Doncic was made aware of Charles Barkley’s guarantee that the Oklahoma City Thunder would blow out the Dallas Mavericks in the fifth game of this series.
Visibly amused over Barkley’s comments, Doncic first expressed his love and admiration for all four of the co-hosts on Inside The NBA. And then, this is what the Mavericks star had to say regarding Sir Charles’ guarantee.
“Maybe next time he can say it again in the next game so maybe we’ll win again.”
"Maybe next time he can say it again in the next game so maybe we'll win again." 😂
Luka responds to Chuck saying OKC was going to blowout the Mavs pic.twitter.com/Chgf86fWgI
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 16, 2024
Luka Doncic took Barkley’s doubts and his ‘Hands-Down’ guarantee in an extremely polite and positive manner. The 6’7 point guard even joked about how Charles Barkley should make another prediction or guarantee as he did before Game 5 so that they win the next game and the series to qualify for the Western Conference Finals.
Charles Barkley is infamously known for his guarantees on national television. The Philadelphia 76ers legend has a track record of predicting all the wrong outcomes with his signature ‘Guuuaarraaaannntteeeee.’
While it started as a joke where fans and Barkley’s co-hosts made fun of his predictions, now other analysts have started to mock Sir Charles over his ‘definite’ predictions. Here is what Skip Bayless had to say.
“I knew the Thunder had no shot tonight when Barkley predicted they would run the Mavs out of the building in Game 5. Ask Ernestine. I said to her: ‘We’re dead.'”
I knew the Thunder had no shot tonight when Barkley predicted they would run the Mavs out of the building in Game 5. Ask Ernestine. I said to her: "We're dead."
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) May 16, 2024
The Mavericks now have a chance to end the series on their home court and send the Oklahoma City Thunder back home for good as both teams travel back to Dallas for Game 6 of this series. Tune into ESPN at 8:00 PM ET on Saturday to see the Dallas Mavericks host the Oklahoma City Thunder for the sixth and possibly the final matchup in this best-of-seven series.
