Charles Barkley did not pull any punches in his critique of the NCAA allowing student-athletes to bet on professional league sports.

Speaking with local reporters ahead of the 10th annual Bruce, Barkley, and Basketball Golf Classic charity event, the NBA Hall of Famer spoke about the dangers of allowing student-athletes to gamble.

“But I saw something last week that let me know we need to do something about the NCAA, where they announced they’re going to let college players bet on pro sports. If that’s not the stupidest sh*t. You talk about putting your kids in the kitchen and turning the stove on. Like, when I heard that, I said: ‘This has got to be a joke,’” Barkley argued. 

“I mean, these are the people we have running college sports right now, and we want to know why it’s a sh*tshow. Anybody that think that’s a good idea should have their head examined,” he went on. “Why would you even do that if you’re the NCAA? Are you serious right now? … We already have issues with kids gambling now, when they shouldn’t be gambling. This is just crazy.”

Barkley then took aim at the controversial college transfer portal, an online database that allows student-athletes to officially declare their intent to transfer to another school, making them available to other coaches. 

“But my biggest problem is the transfer portal. You can’t come and cherry-pick my players, and it’s really going to kill the small schools. Because the big schools are going to come and cherry-pick your players every year,” Barkley said. 

“And that’s not fair at all … And the NCAA, I have zero faith in them. Zero faith in them. I saw a thing last year where they said junior college doesn’t count, which I don’t think is fair. If you’re in college for six and seven years, you should be a doctor and not a player,” he continued. “If you’re going to be in college for six or seven years, you should be Dr. Barkley and not Charles Barkley the basketball player at five different schools.”

Last week, the NCAA‘s Division I Administrative Committee announced it would allow student-athletes and athletic department staff to gamble on professional sports. For the proposal to be approved, it must be approved by all three NCAA divisions. Divisions II and III are slated to consider the proposal at their meetings at the end of October.