NBA legend has words for NCAA regarding NIL

When Charles Barkley speaks, people listen—especially when he calls the NCAA “a bunch of fools and idiots.”

The Hall of Famer and Auburn legend recently lit into college athletics during an appearance on Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich, voicing frustration with how the NCAA has handled Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rules and the transfer portal.

“The NCAA, they’re a bunch of idiots and fools. They have ruined the sport,” Barkley said bluntly. “I don’t know how you put the toothpaste back into the tube.”

Barkley clarified he’s not against players getting paid—but he has major concerns about how it’s being done. He likened the current NIL system to free agency without rules. “Can you imagine if players in the NBA got to be a free agent every year?” he said. “We don’t even get to do that in the NBA.”

College basketball has become, in Barkley’s words, a six-month rental game. Some top players are reportedly earning $6–8 million through NIL deals, only to leave after one season. Barkley questions how any school can see return on that investment—especially if that player doesn’t deliver a national championship.

As for his alma mater, Auburn? Barkley made it crystal clear: he won’t be writing checks to boost NIL funds. “I love Auburn, I do. I’d do anything for Auburn—within reason,” he said. “But I’m not gonna give Auburn millions of dollars so we can be good in football or basketball. That doesn’t help my life in any capacity.”

Instead, Barkley is focused on causes he believes make real impact. “I just gave $10 million to HBCUs,” he noted. “I just gave a couple million dollars to ‘Blight’ in my hometown of Birmingham to rebuild houses. That stuff is way more important to me than joining the cesspool that is college athletics.”

His message to fans and boosters? Think hard before buying into the current NIL arms race.