Charles Barkley is never afraid to share his opinion on just about everything, which makes him one of the best analysts, and personalities, on television.
He continued that during Wednesday night’s Inside the NBA when he took a minute to bash analysts on other networks who have been taking shots at Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham and Phoenix Suns coach Frank Vogel after their teams were bounced from the playoffs.
Barkley isn’t a fan of the way other people on other sports shows have been talking about Ham and Vogel, and he didn’t hold back with his feelings, calling those people “cowards” and “jackasses.”
Both Ham and Vogel could very well be fired after their poor playoff performances. And it seems like Barkley wouldn’t be a fan of either of those moves happening.
ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins made waves last month when he criticized TNT's Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley for the duo's dismissal of the New York Knicks as a viable threat in the Eastern Conference.
"Obviously they don't watch basketball," Perkins said at the time on The Michael Kay Show. "I'm serious, they can't watch basketball on a consistent basis. The only time they actually probably watch the Knicks are when they're covering the Knicks on their game nights."
Barkley and O'Neal had fun with Perkins's verbal shot at them, as they put the NBA analyst's face on a punching bag and punched it on live television during Inside the NBA. Barkley appeared on the Club Shay Shay podcast this week with Shannon Sharpe to discuss the beef between himself and Perkins.
"Yeah it doesn't bother me because we take shots at players," Barkley said. "The only problem I had with what Kendrick says...there's nobody in the world who watches more basketball than me. And I had just come out of March Madness, which pissed me off even more because I was watching two or three college basketball games a day. March Madness really sucks because I'm watching games all day long. But to say other guys don't watch the games..."
"Because he has a different opinion than yours," Sharpe chimed in.
"Yeah," Barkley replied. "So that's the only thing that bothered me. There's nobody in the world that watches more basketball than me. But I don't get mad. The thing that's really funny about it...Shaq is so sensitive at times. I was gonna like let it go and he's like, 'Nah, nah, nah! My momma told me growing up we kill all roaches!'"
“Shaq is so sensitive at times. I was going to let it go, and he’s like, ‘Nah, nah, nah. My momma told me growing up we kill all roaches.’ … Shaq is so crazy. He made a rap diss song.” - Charles Barkley pic.twitter.com/W9h1aKOKCS
TNT basketball broadcaster Charles Barkley joined Sports Illustrated's Jimmy Traina on the SI Media podcast this week to discuss a host of topics, including an incredible story between the exchange of a watch between Barkley and future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady.
"[Brady] and Wayne Gretzky are the two nicest GOATs [Greatest of All-Time] I've ever been around," Barkley began. "As a matter of fact, see this watch here? I've been offered $250,000 for this watch," Barkley told Traina.
"So I'm broadcasting one of the [TNT golf matches for charity], probably four or five years ago, I make a nice comment about this watch and this watch is a pretty penny. I'm talking double-digit thousands. I said, 'That's a nice watch.' He says, 'Thanks, Chuck,' blah blah blah. We do the broadcast another two or three hours. One of Tom's boys comes up to me and he says, 'Hey Tom is looking for you.' ...I go up [to the clubhouse] and I say, 'Tom, what's up?' And he says, 'Chuck, take my watch.' I go, 'What?' I said, 'Tom, I'm just saying you have a nice watch.' [He says], 'I appreciate the compliment,' and he just gives me this watch. A couple of collectors have offered me $250,000 for it. I wouldn't sell it for any amount. That's what a guy Tom is. Him and Wayne Gretzky for being the GOATs of their sports are two of the nicest, most humble guys I ever met."
Barkley said it was never his intention for Brady to give him his watch.
"I didn't want him to think I gave him a compliment on the watch because I wanted the watch," Barkley added. "It was a nice watch. I said, 'Tom, you don't have to do that.' But when he said it a second time, I said thank you."
It's clear there is a healthy amount of mutual respect between two all-time greats in their respective sports, but it's pretty wild that Brady handed over a watch that is being appraised for a quarter of a million dollars.
Charles Barkley made a guest appearance on ESPN's NHL analyst desk during Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final, joining the likes of Mark Messier, P.K. Subban and Steve Levy in between the first and second periods of Monday night's game.
Levy hinted at the potential for Barkley to make the leap over to ESPN, jokingly referring to him as the "newest member of ESPN's NBA coverage" while introducing the 61-year-old.
Steve Levy wasted no time trying to convince Charles Barkley to join ESPN's NBA coverage during his guest appearance on ABC's coverage of the Stanley Cup.
"Steve Levy, Mark Messier, P.K. Subban, and the newest member of ESPN's NBA coverage?"👀pic.twitter.com/WhLPgNFReT
"Welcome Mark Messier, P.K. Subban and the newest member of ESPN's NBA coverage? Maybe?" said Levy at the start of the segment.
Rather than immediately address his job, Barkley comically changed the topic and mentioned that Messier owes him $5,000 stemming from a delay of game penalty he took during his playing days.
After discussing Barkley's hockey fandom and his relationship with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, the crew circled back to the topic of Barkley's employment. The NBA Hall of Famer joked that he wished he had a job lined up and that he was back on LinkedIn.
With the NBA on TNT crew facing an uncertain future, the prospect of Barkley joining ESPN's NBA coverage isn't all too far fetched, and Levy wasted no time stirring the pot in that regard.
