As the NBA regular season begins to win down and the playoffs approach, there are many people wondering if the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors will make the cut and earn a spot in the postseason.
Charles Barkley is not one of those people. He adamantly believes that they will not be participating in this season's playoffs.
"The idiots on the other network keep talking about the Lakers and the Warriors like they have a chance," Barkley said on TNT earlier this week.
When Shaquille O'Neal reminded Barkley that they could make it into the postseason because of the Play-In Tournament, he shot back.
"The Play-In's not a real thing, just for the record. That's just something we made up, Shaq. Just like the CBI Tournament," Barkley said.
The Lakers and Warriors are two of the biggest NBA franchises of all time with some of the most successful stars to ever play but that doesn't mean they have what it takes to reach the postseason or even the Play-In.
The Warriors and Lakers are currently the ninth and tenth seeds, respectively, and will have to play incredibly strong and consistent basketball for the next few weeks if they wish to get into the Play-In Tournament.
They are set to battle each other on Saturday night, which could give fans a glimpse of what the Play-In could look like in mid-April.
Even if these teams make it past the Play-In Tournament, their road ahead will be very tough. If they are able to have a strong run in the playoffs, it'll be one of the most surprising comebacks in recent NBA history.