Charles Barkley took up the job of being an analyst for the NBA almost immediately after retiring as a Houston Rocket in 2000. He joined forces with former Rocket, Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith and Ernie Johnson on ‘Inside the NBA’ and has been on the show for well over 2 decades now.
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While the show is known for its gags and shenanigans, it is also one that has to tackle some very sensitive issues every now and then. One of these moments was when Isaiah Thomas had lost his sister, Chyna, during the 2017 NBA Playoffs when the Celtics were about to face off against the Chicago Bulls.
Prior to Game 1 between the Celts and the Bulls, IT was seen crying on the bench with only his teammate, Avery Bradley, consoling him in the near empty stadium. This clip went viral and debate over whether or not he should’ve even played that game was ignited.
Charles Barkley on watching Isaiah Thomas cry before a Playoff game
The ‘Inside the NBA’ crew discussed this moment when it took place and Charles Barkley kicked things off by saying he felt uncomfortable watching Isaiah Thomas play a Playoff basketball game in that state.
“I’m not feeling comfortable with him sitting on the sidelines crying like that. That makes me uncomfortable, so that tells me he’s not in shape to play. I mean, I don’t know how this night is going to turn out but to be sitting on the sideline, a few minutes before the game, crying, that makes me uncomfortable for him,” said Chuck.
Shaquille O’Neal gave his insight on it all as well, drawing parallels between this moment in time for IT and when he had to play a regular season game in April of 1996 after his grandmother had passed away.
Isaiah Thomas would lead the Celtics to the Eastern Conference Finals
Despite what had transpired in his personal life, Isaiah Thomas went out on the Boston home floor and dropped the most points scored in that entire 6-game series with 33 on the night in Game 1.
The Celts won that first round series in 6 games and would go on to face off against the Washington Wizards in the ECSF in what would become a classic 7-games series that came down to the wire. IT even scored 53 points in Game 2 of the series.
Eventually, they would run into Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers and would get gentleman swept by them in the Conference Finals.
Also read: Charles Barkley, Who is Worth $50 million, was Once Ridden With Credit Card Debt Thanks to Visa
