NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley is known for his bold takes and predictions.

On Thursday, he made another during the Inside The NBA show on TNT. Before the broadcast of the Los Angeles Lakers versus New York Knicks, the panel of Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith discussed the playoffs.

Barkley boldly claimed the Cleveland Cavaliers will make the NBA Finals, placing them ahead of the defending champion Boston Celtics.

“The Cleveland Cavaliers are going to the Finals,” Barkley said. “That’s going to be a great series if they play the Celtics. But right now, I’m telling y’all and told to book it last week, the Cleveland Cavaliers are going to the NBA Finals.”

At 52-10, the Cavaliers have the best record in league. The Celtics are still considered the favorite in the East because of their experience and the presence of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The young Cavaliers are led by All-Star Donovan Mitchell.

PARISH RECORD CONSIDERED UNBREAKABLE

Today’s NBA is dominated by the 3-point shot.

Teams can sometimes take many as 50 shots from the arc in one game. This is why former Boston Celtics center Robert Parish has perhaps one of the most “unbreakable” records in league history. The website RotoGrinders recently compiled a list of marks that will most likely never be touched.

Parish scoring 23,334 points without a 3-pointer topped the list.

The website wrote, “Parish attempted 6 3-point shots throughout his career without making a single one. The next closest player to Parish is Wayman Tisdale, with 12,878 career points.”

The website lists other players like A.C. Green, Scott Skiles and Wilt Chamberlain with other records that will never get touched.

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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