Charles Barkley aims to dig at Donald Trump as he compares NBA All-Star fan vote to elections

NBA Hall of Famer Charley Barkley has claimed basketball fans should no longer account for 50 percent of the NBA All-Star game vote, comparing it to presidential elections by popular vote.

The TNT analyst voiced his opinion on Thursday’s ‘Inside the NBA’ after the revelation of the starting five for both the Western and Eastern Conferences. LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo were named captains for the annual game on February 19 in Utah.

‘We let the fans vote… look what happened last time they got to vote for President,’ Barkley said before an awkward pause reigned in the TNT studio for a brief second.

‘Alright, hey now,’ said the show’s host, Adam Lefkoe, who was subbing in for Earnie Johnson. Other pundits on the panel, Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal were left speechless.

‘I don’t mean the old guy,’ the former Phoenix Suns, Philadelphia 76ers and Houston Rockets small forward clarified in a dig at Donald Trump.

‘Sorry President [Joe] Biden.’

Starters for this year’s edition were traditionally selected by a combination of three different votes: fan balloting counting for 50 percent, media balloting taking in 25 percent and voting by the NBA’s players making up the final 25 percent.

One tweak to this year’s All-Star game is the final decision on which players will be picked to start, despite the traditional announcement taking place a little less than a month before the game.

The team captains — James and Antetokounmpo — will make their picks in a live, televised pregame segment shortly before the start of the contest in Salt Lake City.

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association announced the format change on Tuesday night, two days before Thursday’s revelations.