Rick Barnes quote on Tennessee's awful passing rightfully has everyone talking

Even with an eight-point victory against the Auburn Tigers over the weekend, Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes was far from satisfied with the Volunteers' performance.

"Some of the passes that we throw, I don't know what to say other than sometimes I wonder if my guys are betting on games," Barnes said in the postgame press conference. "I shouldn't say that, but ya know... erase that."

Barnes laughed off the comment, as did the reporters in the room, but apologized again just a few seconds later.

Rick Barnes simply made a joke he shouldn't have

Of course, this season of college basketball has been tainted by a federal investigation into sports gambling, which has involved numerous college basketball teams and players.

Barnes' joke was out of pocket and maybe not his best move as a head coach, but it was to enforce a point that he simply can't understand what his players are doing when they make ill-advised pass attempts, especially the ones that result in turnovers.

In the game against Auburn, the Vols gave up 15 turnovers, and only forced 10 by the Tigers. Yes, Auburn went home with the loss, but Steven Pearl's squad earned more steals (9) than Barnes' team did (7).

The Volunteers' play at the end of games is sloppy at best, and Barnes' comment, while not ideal, reflects the frustration he must feel with his top-25 team making those kinds of simple mistakes.

Earlier this season, Barnes made a comment that his team from last year (led by stars like Chaz Lanier, Zakai Zeigler, and Jahmai Mashack) wouldn't make the mistakes that this year's team has made.

For comparison, this year, Tennessee has averaged 13.1 turnovers per game. Last year, the Volunteers averaged just 10.5 TOs per matchup.

Sure, the Vols are 15-6 overall and are sixth in a highly competitive SEC, but a head coach with a lifetime contract at a school like Tennessee expects more from his team. It's that simple. No, Barnes shouldn't have made the joke, which he quickly backtracked on, but he has every right to be frustrated.