The Dallas Mavericks successfully defeated the OKC Thunder in Game 5 of the Semifinals series. With this, the franchise now leads 3-2. Lead scorer Luka Doncic once again came out on top by adding over 31 points to the overall score. With this performance, the player has certainly proved the prophecy made by Charles Barkley wrong. If you think Doncic was gonna not gloat over the fact, then you were wrong.

During the post-game Q&A session, Doncic was questioned by the crew over at ‘Inside the NBA’ on TNT. When asked if there is anything he would like to say to host Charles Barkley, the Slovenian player replied, “I love that show. I love those four guys. I always watch it, all the games. Maybe next time, he (Barkley) can say it again in the next game. So maybe we will win again”. Why and when did this all begin?

The Dallas Mavericks had lost their Game 4 clash against OKC by a close score of 96-100. After the game, Charles Barkley claimed OKC got “lucky” since Luka Doncic and shooting guard Kyrie Irving did not play well. Later on, however, he stated that OKC would manage to repeat their success during Game 5 in a big manner. His opinion certainly garnered the attention of many.

“I’m expecting that place to be loud, and I’m expecting OKC to run them out of the building,” Barkley said during the pregame segment.

In the end, the 5x NBA All-Star was able to make the 76ers legend eat his words. Despite still dealing with an injury, he managed to reach the 31-point threshold through his 12-22 field goals and 5-11 three-pointers. Along with that, he also recorded 10 rebounds and 11 assists during the matchup, adding another post-season triple-double to his already impressive record. Doncic also received assistance from Derrick Jones Jr. and Kyrie Irving, who added a combined 31 points to the overall score. While OKC star scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander proceeded to drop an impressive 30 points, his contribution was certainly not enough to give his team the desired edge.

The ‘NBA on TNT’ crew would have been on Cloud Nine upon learning that Luka Doncic was a fan of their show. At the same time, knowing the pranks that the co-hosts keep pulling on each other, they would have appreciated the Mavericks star’s epic remark.

Charles Barkley’s appreciative post-game comments on Mavs & Luka Doncic

To Charles Barkley’s credit, he was quick to realize his mistake and make up for it. In the aftermath of the Game 5 matchup, the ‘NBA on TNT’ crew once again met up to discuss the Mavericks’ performance. The 11x NBA All-Star took the lead by complementing the franchise on their “great win” and admitting his folly.

“Clearly, I was wrong,” said Barkley. “Luka was fantastic, Derek Jones was fantastic, and PJ (Washington) played great down the stretch. But Luka set the tone early, and they were playing downhill.”

For the past few days, rumors have been circulating that TNT may end up losing a part of its media rights deal to NBC. As a result, the highly acclaimed ‘Inside the NBA’ show may even come to an end. Charles Barkley confirmed the rumors during an interview by stating, “We might lose it. I feel so bad for the people I work with. It is brutal. Everybody’s scared to death.” Not knowing what the future may hold for them, the legend may be looking to put out the best predictions. Unfortunately, it funnily went sideways with the Slovenian star and the Mavs.

Luka Doncic and Co need just one more win on their side to proceed to the Conference Finals for the second time in 13 years. Would Charles Barkley want to make another prediction about the Mavs? Or, he may just take up Luka Doncic’s advice and provide the roster with a good omen!