Lavar Ball fires back at Charles Barkley

The LaVar Ball soap opera continues.

In this week’s chapter of the NBA’s version of “Young and the Restless,” the father of Lonzo Ball — now of the New Orleans Pelicans after being traded from the Lakers — said Charles Barkley was jealous of him.

Call it the “Young and the Jealous.”

Last week, the NBA analyst was asked about Ball’s inappropriate comments directed toward “First Take” co-host Molly Qerim.

Barkley, the former Auburn basketball standout, was asked for a reaction to the comments.

“Don’t talk about LaVar Ball,” Barkley said. “I don’t talk about LaVar Ball. Wherever LaVar Ball is, there is a village missing their idiot.”

On Monday, Ball had a message for Barkley.

“Here’s what I say: I don’t even pertain to Charles because he’s so jealous of me,” Ball said to @sleepersallday. “He wants to be me so bad. He’s never had a father. He wishes I was his father. That’s why he’s so animate towards me.

“He’s just got a little problem right now. He’s an old guy. He doesn’t know where he’s going right now. So, it’s OK. But hey, I ain’t gonna mess with Charles. He’s lost in his mind right now. It’s OK, when you get old sometimes that happens. I know he’s jealous. He wants everything I got. People don’t come up to him, kids don’t believe in him. Nothing.

“He’s talking about a village. Tell him I live in the city. You still live in a village?”

As a result of Ball’s comments to Qerim, ESPN decided last month the network wouldn’t be using him on any of its platforms moving forward.

Special Photo: Richard Mackson