WATCH: Charles Barkley Slams NCAA Rule Allowing Players to Bet on Pro Sports: ‘Stupidest Sh*t’

Those who think it’s a bad idea to allow college athletes to bet on professional sports have a friend in NBA and NCAA legend Charles Barkley.

Speaking to reporters at the Bruce, Barkley & Basketball Golf Classic on Monday, Barkley segued from a critique of the NCAA’s handling of name, image, and likeness (NIL) issues to blasting the collegiate sports governing body for a rule that would allow college athletes and coaches to bet on professional sports.

“But I saw something last week — which let me know that we need to do something about the NCAA — where they announced that they’re gonna let college players bet on pro sports,” Barkley said. “If that’s not the stupidest sh*t. You talk about putting your kids in the kitchen and turning the stove on. Like, you know, you can’t even — like, when I heard it, I said, this gotta be a joke, this gotta be a joke.

“I mean, these are the people we got running college sports, and we want to know why it’s a sh*t show. I mean, anybody that thinks that’s a good idea should have their head examined. Like, why would you even do that if you’re the NCAA? Like, are you serious right now? You think that’s a good idea? Because we’ve already got issues going on with kids gambling now, when they shouldn’t be gambling. I mean, this is just crazy!”

Last Wednesday, the NCAA Division I Administrative Committee approved the controversial proposal. The proposition now goes before the respective Division II and Division III committees. Both the DII and DII committees are expected to vote on the measure by the end of October.