Charles Barkley says Colorado "Got lucky" with Deion Sanders

The former NBA superstar sees wins in the Buffs future

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Charles Barkley has always been outspoken with his projections. The NBA on TNT analyst gave his thoughts on how Deion Sanders would fare at Colorado. While Chuck isn't bitter about Coach Prime passing up his beloved alma mater, it seems to be a sore subject.

"(Sanders) is going to be successful," Barkley told Denver Post's Sean Keeler. "I like him a lot as a person and (Colorado) got very lucky."

Auburn showed interest in hiring Sanders but eventually settled on highly-controversial Hugh Freeze, who was embroiled in an escort scandal during his time at Ole Miss.

Colorado beat out the pack of schools trying to swoon Coach Prime away from Jackson State because they were willing to hand over control of the football program. It was reportedly a factor Auburn athletic director John Cohen wasn't going to budge on. It's also something Barkley can't comprehend.

"I don't know why, man, I can't answer that question," Barkley said about Auburn not hiring Sanders. "It's going to be great for (CU)."

The middle of the road SEC school will likely learn a lesson by not taking Rick George's approach. But for Sanders, the sky's the limit at CU with a better setup than most schools in the west.

Sanders has spent the greater part of the past seven months flipping a roster with over 70 new players. A melting pot of talent from around the country with a majority coming via the transfer portal. The Buffs have one of the toughest schedules going into the 2023 season, starting with TCU, Nebraska, and Colorado State.