Despite his insistence to the contrary, Charles Barkley firmed himself up in the minds of many as a Lakers hater on Thursday, a tag he'll now live with through the rest of the season. He's also been tagged as an ESPN-hater, which will be a tricky hoop to jump through next year when the popular "Inside the NBA" show moves from TNT over to ESPN.
But it was the Lakers who were at the center of attention on Thursday night, coming into their game against the Knicks with a seven-game winning streak during which they outscored opponents by nearly 12 points per game.
L.A. had shot 48.0% during the streak and 35.1% from the 3-point line, but it was defense that drove the wins, allowing a shooting mark of 42.4% and 31.8% from 3.
Against the Knicks in a showdown at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday night, things got off to a slow start, with New York coming to L.A. and exposing some weaknesses for the Lakers to open the game. The Knicks led by nine at half, and it was at that point that Barkley felt the need to gloat.
After all, he had called out ESPN and its talk shows for spending so much time covering the Lakers (and the Warriors) in the past month while ignoring championship contenders like the Thunder and Cavaliers. Some at ESPN, most notably former NBA big man Kendrick Perkins, a prominent ESPN personality, clapped back at Barkley.
Charles Barkley at Knicks-Lakers halftime: "I'm not a hater. I'm just worried about people on the other network (ESPN). They're gonna be sad tomorrow. They're gonna be sad and crying. (Crying noises) A Laker loss!..."
....
Ernie Johnson: "Do me a favor. Let it go..." https://t.co/18PPaS51ARpic.twitter.com/o7KJ86Mje9
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 7, 2025
But when TNT went to the halftime show, with the Knicks ahead by nine points, Barkley was already prodding the Lakers.
"I'm not a hater. I'm just worried about people on the other network (ESPN), they're gonna be sad tomorrow," Barkley said. "They're gonna be sad and crying."
Barkley then punctated his statement with mock crying noises. "A Laker loss!" he said and chimed in with, "I can't believe they lost!"
The Lakers did not lose, of course. They erased a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter and went on to win in overtime. After the game, Barkley played things straight, saying, "Great win by the Lakers," and adding some analysis of what went wrong for the Knicks.
Ah, but fans were not about to let him off the hook.
"Haahahhahahah HE HAD TO HATE SAYING THAT," one noted. And there was plenty more.
Charles Barkley pic.twitter.com/y3PzpTEPeT
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) March 7, 2025
Charles Barkley after the Lakers snatched Victory from the Jaws of Defeat: pic.twitter.com/gQoOgdA2Tc
— Lakers Legacy (@LakersLegacyPod) March 7, 2025
Chuck at halftime vs Chuck after the game pic.twitter.com/TJNH9J60zw
— pickuphoop (@pickuphoop) March 7, 2025
The Lakers will now take an eight-game winning streak into a brutal four-game road trip that starts on Saturday against the Celtics.
Related: Lakers' JJ Redick Makes Key Announcement on Rui Hachimura
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This story was originally published March 7, 2025 at 6:30 AM.