The Milwaukee Bucks just pulled off what no one thought was going to be possible at the beginning of the NBA season: Knocking down the Brooklyn Nets and their offensive juggernaut, albet with two-thirds of their stars hurt or out.

Regardless, what matters is that they got the job done. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton rose to the occasion, Brook Lopez made some huge plays down the stretch, and Jrue Holiday shook off his offensive woes and delivered when it mattered the most.

Now, most oddsmakers believe that the Bucks should be favored in any series going forward and that they should be on the driver's seat to win the NBA Finals. But not everything is good news for them.

Charles Barkley Says The Milwaukee Bucks Will Win The NBA Championship

Hall of Famer Charles Barkley pretty much doomed their season, as he went on record saying that the Milwaukee Bucks are going to win the Finals. For those who lack the context, Barkley has tanked over 90% of his picks:

"They go through these valleys where they are fantastic and the rest of the time they get the ball to Giannis at the top of the key and it's frustrating to watch. But I'm going to tell you right now: the Milwaukee Bucks going to win the world championship. We might as well deal with that. That's  my personal opinion. I think they beat Philly or Atlanta and whoever come out the West," Barkley said on NBA on TNT.

Barkley has missed 12 of his past 13 picks and the only he got right was when he said that the Suns were going to beat the Anthony Davis-less Lakers. So, that's not an encouraging record as a handicapper.

 

All jokes aside, the Bucks do have what it takes to win the NBA Finals in terms of personnel. But they still need to get past the Atlanta Hawks or Philadelphia 76ers to get there, and then beat the Phoenix Suns or Los Angeles Clippers, as undermanned as they could be.