Charles Barkley guarantees Clippers sweep Nuggets, so it won’t happen

Inside the NBA’s Charles Barkley guaranteed that the Clippers will sweep the Nuggets in the second round, which means it won’t happen.

NBA legend and analyst Charles Barkley just made the most recent installment in a long line of guarantees which haven’t quite panned out.

After previously “guaranteeing,” per The Spun, that the Portland Trail Blazers would make the NBA Finals (they lost in the first round) and Indiana Pacers would take Game 3 against the Miami Heat (they were eventually swept), Barkley proclaimed Thursday night that the Los Angeles Clippers would sweep the Denver Nuggets in the second round.

Barkley made the guarantee in response to the above tweet, and Nuggets fans have to be ecstatic. After a brutal Game 1 blowout in which Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points in the first three quarters, the Nuggets need all the help that they can get, including a Barkley jinx.

If you believe in jinxes, Charles Barkley may have given Denver some life

Barkley’s “guarantees” have become something of a running joke among NBA fans, with even the NBA on TNT Twitter account calling out his spotty record.

While Game 1 certainly suggested that the Nuggets have serious work to do if they hope to stay relevant in the series, guaranteeing a sweep after just one game seems premature. The Nuggets put together one of their worst performances of the playoffs, with stars Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic both going cold from the field.

That is not likely to happen again, and if both players can figure things out, this series could quickly look much more even. Murray was unbelievable in the first round against the Utah Jazz, and recapturing that shooting touch could help Denver steal a few games. Jokic is also likely to bounce back, with the Clippers lacking a paint presence like Rudy Robert on defense.

While it remains to be seen whether one of Barkley’s guarantees finally comes to fruition, the Nuggets have a better chance in this series than Game 1 would suggest. With some regression to the mean and a better defensive performance, Denver could tie up the series on Saturday night.