Philadelphia 76ers legend Charles Barkley gave fans and viewers some memorable moments during his playing days in the NBA. The Round Mound of Rebound did not stop appearing in the spotlight even after his playing days were over as he joined the NBA on TNT crew later on. But did you know that Charles Barkley once ended up kissing a donkey’s a** on national television due to a bet he made?
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Charles Barkley has become one of the most beloved personalities in the NBA even after retiring. Be it his takes on what’s going on in the league or his spats with Shaquille O’Neal and the rest of the crew, viewers can’t help but want more of Barkley.
But in 2002, Barkley predicted that Houston Rockets legend Yao Ming wouldn’t be able to score more than 19 points all season. He even made the bold statement that he’d kiss Yao’s a** if he did manage to score more than 19.
2002 being Yao Ming’s rookie season, the 7’6 center was able to make Sir Charles regret his words. Only 20 days after Barkley’s bold statement, Ming dropped 20 points on the Los Angeles Lakers in a regular season matchup.
He finished the game shooting 9-9 from the field and also ended up nabbing 6 rebounds in a 93-89 victory over the Lakers. And due to Barkley’s big mouth, he ended up kissing a donkey a** while on the show.
Charles Barkley should’ve learned that betting against players only gives them that extra motivation to prove him wrong. Players would go out of their way to perform well when there’s an analyst who believes that they could not achieve what he ended up saying on national television.
But Barkley certainly did not learn his lesson as he went on to make some wild predictions over the years and some even wilder claims as well. Lucky for him, the players did not have a task for Barkley when he lost the bet. However, he did have some other wild moments over the years.
Charles Barkley’s crazy antics over the years
Here is another incident where Charles Barkley has an entire arena entertained due to his antics. During the 2007 NBA All-Star Game, Barkley went up in a race against NBA official Dick Bavetta. Barkley who was 43 at the time decided to go on a full-court back-and-forth with Dick Bavetta who was 67 at the time.
Both Barkley and Bavetta got ready to defeat the other but it was Sir Charles who still had some fuel left in the tank from his NBA days. After Barkley managed to defeat the official who was 24 years older than him, the Hall of Famer walked over to him and planted a kiss on his lips in front of the entire arena and the viewers watching it at home.
Even though this incident happened well over a decade ago, the rest of the NBA on TNT crew did not let him forget that moment. A few months ago, the remaining NBA on TNT crew went on to roast Barkley for kissing Dick Bavetta on the lips.
Now, one could say that Barklye’s days of trolling are behind him but it may be a safe bet to assume that Sir Charles will be giving fans some more memorable moments over the years regardless of his age.
