Charles Barkley is facing some heat for his premature prediction of the New York Knicks' demise in a Game 3 win over the Indiana Pacers.
The TNT commentator had a dire prediction for the Knicks during halftime of Sunday's game. The Knicks managed just 45 points in the first half, going into halftime trailing by 13 points and watching the deficit rise to 16 points early in the third quarter.
Barkley didn't see any path to victory for the Knicks, who had already dropped the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals at home before traveling to Indiana for Game 3.
"Now, this game is pretty much over," Barkley said. "This is a wrap because the Knicks can't play fast and beat the Pacers. But they're down 13, so they gotta play fast. They're gonna get ran out of this [expletive] building."
But the curtains didn't come down on the Knicks, who went on a 26-10 run that culminated with a 89-88 fourth-quarter lead. The Knicks kept their foot on the gas, winning 106-100 to stay alive in the series.
After the game, Barkley took some heat for prematurely declaring the Knicks dead in the contest.
"Aging like curdled milk," one fan wrote in a post on X.
"Barkley is funny and everything but he is a lousy analyst," another wrote.
The win kept the Knicks from falling in a 3-0 hole in the series and guarantees that they will return to Madison Square Garden for Game 5.