Charles Barkley doesn’t need to do a ton of research when it comes to picking his favorite teams each year in the men’s NCAA tournament.
If his Auburn Tigers are in the big dance, he’ll ride with his alma mater. And if the Tigers get knocked out — like they did on Friday in a massive Yale upset — he’ll just root for which ever teams are playing against the favorite teams of his NBA on TNT co-hosts.
With No. 1 North Carolina facing No. 9 Michigan State on Saturday, Barkley was asked about joining the Tom Izzo bandwagon and gave a very succinct and sarcastic answer.
“I want Izzo to win because I hate Kenny [Smith].” Barkley joked.
Charles Barkley at halftime of the North Carolina-Michigan State game:
"You can see [the Tar Heels are] a better team, and I think it's gonna end up getting out of hand."
"I want (Tom) Izzo to win because I hate Kenny (Smith)." 🏀 #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/IjNEyiSl8o
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 23, 2024
Smith seemed thrilled about the development.
Knowing you’ve just gotten under Barkley’s skin must still be so satisfying after all these years. Especially when Charles has certainly had worse reasons for picking teams in March.