Charles Barkley

There are plenty of Lonzo Ball haters out there, and it appears Charles Barkey is among them. When TMZ Sports asked Barkley about the Lakers’ playoff chances next season, he responded with a hard no.

TMZ: “Now who’s better, the Sixers or the Lakers now? Who’s better?

Barkley: “The Sixers. Much better.”

TMZ: “Are the Lakers a playoff team?”

Barkley: “No. Hell no!

TMZ: “Not even with Lonzo?”

Barkley: “No.”

Lonzo’s outspoken father, LaVar Ball, already guaranteed a Lakers’ playoff berth in 2018. So someone will come out of this dead wrong by next spring. Barkley and LaVar have exchanged barbed words in the past with Barkley calling LaVar the most disliked person in sports and LaVar taking shots at Barkley’s parenting skills.

Barkley also said he likes the Sixers more than the Lakers, which makes sense as long as Philly stays healthy. Joel Embiid was as healthy as he’s ever been in his NBA career last season and still played only 31 games. Ben Simmons still hasn’t played in an NBA game. And Markelle Fultz was shut down in Summer League after spraining his ankle.

The Sixers certainly look more like a playoff team right now, but they also have the weak Eastern Conference to thank for that.

[TMZ Sports]

About Jesse Kramer

Jesse is a writer and editor for The Comeback. He has also worked for SI.com and runs The Catch and Shoot, a college basketball website based in Chicago. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Follow Jesse on Twitter @Jesse_Kramer.