Charles Barkley ‘loses' massive bet over Heat's brutal loss to Hawks

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If you already penciled in the Miami Heat as the Boston Celtics' first-round playoff opponent before Tuesday night, you're not alone.

Prior to Miami's NBA play-in tournament matchup with the 41-41 Atlanta Hawks, TNT analyst Charles Barkley confidently picked the Heat to win easily -- and was willing to back it up with cash.

"They're gonna beat the Hawks. Come on, the Hawks stink," Barkley told co-host Shaquille O'Neal, before saying he'd be willing to bet "a billion dollars" on a Heat win.

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Fast forward to a few hours later after the Hawks pulled off a 116-105 upset victory that punched their ticket to Round 1 to face the Celtics beginning Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Shaq made sure to remind Chuck of his pregame bet.

We doubt any actual money exchanged hands here, but Barkley's bold bet was proof that few gave Atlanta a chance to defeat a Heat team with a history of elevating its play in the postseason.

Instead, Miami shot just 42.9 percent from the floor while the Hawks dominated the boards, outrebounding the Heat 63-39 while pulling down 22 offensive rebounds to Miami's six.

Celtics fans have to be pleased about drawing a Hawks team that ranked 26th in the NBA in points allowed per game instead of a Heat squad that took them to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals last season. The C's swept their season series with Atlanta this season (3-0) and should feel pretty confident entering this first-round matchup.

Then again, both Barkley and the Heat paid the price for underestimating the Hawks on Tuesday night, so Boston should be wary of making the same mistake.

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