Charles Barkley has been the entertainer-in-chief at Inside the NBA from the day he signed on to punditry post-retirement. From incredible guarantees to races with Shaquille O’Neal, we have seen the lot.
Advertisement
Six Cinco De Mayo’s ago, Barkley gave the audience a Spanish lesson to remember. The former 76ers and Suns superstar, in the name of some Spanish education, gave the audience an incredible laugh and a lesson from his mistakes – not the education that was promised.
The Spanish lesson came on the back of a statement that put Barkley’s supposed interest to learn Spanish to the audience as a whole. The legitimacy of the statement was put to the test by the Inside The NBA crew after a five-year gap. And the results? A big fat F for Charles Barkley indeed.
And just how bad was Chuck’s situation? Let’s just say Barkley would fare better in a pub in Guadalajara than in a peaceful household in Tijuana.
Just how bad was Sir Charles’ Spanish conquest in 2016?
“Hello, how are you” is probably the first phrase one picks up in any new language. Unless you are Charles Barkley, it would appear. The Chuckster could not accurately identify the most basic sentence in the Spanish language, on live television.
However, surprisingly enough, Barkley accurately recognized what gets him a beer in Spanish. Coincidence? I think not.
And the rest of the exercise wasn’t kind to Chuck either. Video evidence points to an unsuccessful Spanish quest from the former NBA superstar.
The plight of Barkley’s Spanish education mission is visible to all and Chuck himself breaks into laughter during the “test”. Barkley’s plight was so bad, the former MVP tries taking consolation points by translating “Tu Madre” as “My Mother” instead of “Your Mother”.
Clearly, punditry and not being a linguist was what lay ahead for Chuck post-retirement. With a new contract with Inside the NBA projected to keep him on for a long time, will we see another Chuck learns Spanish episode?
What are the terms of the new deal between Chuck and Turner Sports?
Shortly before the commencement of the 2022-23 season, the Chuckster signed a new deal with Turner Sports which keeps him contracted to them until the end of the decade.
Barkley’s extension goes well north of $100 million and is touted to be closer to the $200 million mark. Quite the deal indeed, for the services of one of basketball’s most respected and popular figures.
Retirement is still in the books, however. While the chances of Barkley utilizing that option remain slim, it still is a lingering possibility.
That said, ideally, we shall still have Chuck and Shaq hurling jokes at each other up until 2029-30. Inside the TNT will look to maintain their status as the top dogs in the punditry market and utilize the extended time they secured with their superstar crew.
