Charles Barkley goes off on heckling Warriors fans after Golden State's Game 1 win over Mavs: 'Y'all suck too'
Barkley stuck to his choice despite the Mavericks trailing the Warriors 54-45 by halftime
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Golden State Warriors fans outside the Chase Center in San Francisco on Wednesday night didn’t take kindly to Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley picking the Dallas Mavericks to win the Western Conference Finals – and they made sure he knew that.
After the Warriors dominated the Mavs in Game 1, winning 112-87, Barkley was attempting to explain why Dallas shouldn’t be too concerned when fans behind the "Inside the NBA" set began chanting "Barkley sucks!"
Charles Barkley talking on set before the Knicks-Cavaliers game on Oct. 25, 2016, at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. (David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
"I thought they got great shots in the first half, they just did not go in. But the one thing we’ve learned during the playoffs, if you go back to Milwaukee-Boston Game 1, you go back to Dallas against Phoenix Game 1, nobody’s going to overreact – Hey y’all right and Y’all suck too!" he shouted at the crowd.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MAVERICKS FINED $50,000 FOR VIOLATING NBA’S ‘BENCH DECORUM’ RULES IN GAME 7 VICTORY
"I love doing that," he said after finally addressing the hecklers.
Trouble seemingly began when, during TNT’S Sunday night broadcast of "Inside the NBA," Barkley picked the Mavs to win the series because of Luka Doncic‘s impact.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Nobody can handle that dude one-on-one and if [Jalen] Brunson and [Spencer] Dinwiddie keep playing like they’re playing, this team is going to be tough to beat," Barkley said at the time.
Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks drives against the Golden State Warriors during the Western Conference Finals on May 18, 2022, at Chase Center in San Francisco, California. (Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
He echoed that sentiment on Wednesday night even when the Mavs were trailing the Warriors 54-45 at halftime.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"If they make enough shots in four out of seven games, they’re going to win this series because the way the Golden State Warriors play defense – they can't play Luka like that. You can't play that dude one-on-one … if the Mavs make some shots, they're gonna win."
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors is defended by Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks during the third quarter of the Western Conference Finals at Chase Center on May 18, 2022, in San Francisco. (Harry How/Getty Images)
Doncic scored 20 points, compared to Steph Curry’s 21-point night, but shot just 6 for 18 and 3 of 10 from deep.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals will be back in San Francisco\, where Barkley can surely expect the same "welcome" he received Wednesday night.