Charles Barkley is no stranger to blaming President Trump for everything, but now the former NBA star is blaming the president for Team USA’s loss to Canada.
Canada defeated the U.S. 3-2 in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game on Thursday night in Boston. The win was extra bitter for the Americans, considering they had just beaten the Canadians 3-1 on Saturday night in Montreal.
One of the many subplots to the game was President Trump’s joking suggestion that Canada become the “51st state.” In addition, Canadians had been booing the U.S. anthem due to the “51st state” comment and the president’s threat of tariffs.
Soon after the game ended, Barkley told Inside the NBA viewers on TNT that the Canadians were motivated by Trump’s actions.
“I’m not gonna be a sore loser,” Barkley said. “Congrats to Canada. I’m sorry we got the tariffs on you.”
Co-host Kenny Smith sought clarification from Bakley, asking whether he was linking the tariffs to Canada’s victory.
"They were playing harder because of the tariffs and they didn’t want to be the 51st state. That’s motivation!" - Charles Barkley on Canada's win over the United States pic.twitter.com/OLEVWXjWpf
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 21, 2025
“They were playing harder because of the tariffs,” Barkley replied, “and they didn’t wanna be the 51st state. That’s motivation!”
