Anyone who’s watched the NBA on TNT knows that Charles Barkley is a wild spirit when it comes to his analysis. He’s constantly belittling players and talking about how little he’s actually watching the games. Because of these antics, Adam Silver recently called him the NBA’s crazy uncle.
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The callout by Silver wasn’t particularly false. He seemed like he meant it in a good way, like that crazy uncle at the BBQ cookout who says weird, but hilarious, and sometimes true things. Barkley is quite good at getting away with saying whatever he wants on TV.
In response to the comments from Silver, Barkley took them in stride. He didn’t seem to hold any hatred toward the commissioner for what he said. “It doesn’t bother you that he called you the crazy uncle? That’s what I’m getting,” Mike Missanelli asked Barkley on 97.5 The Fanatic.
“No, not at all,” Barkley responded. “Everybody knows who I am and what I do. I’m very good at what I do. And, uh, no, that doesn’t bother me. I love Adam Silver. But I understand. We don’t have the NBA no more. He’s got to pump up ESPN.”
Not only did Barkley not hold any ill will toward Silver, but he even said that he loved him. It goes to show that the two have a good relationship despite what they say about each other. After all, there was once a time when Barkley completely ignored Silver’s request to apologize on television. And he still kept his job because he played it off like an entertainment TV savant.
Barkley has always had a wild side to him
There’s perhaps no better example of Barkley embodying the crazy uncle persona than when he refused to apologize to the women of San Antonio. At the time, he had made somewhat offensive comments their way, although it was meant in jest. Regardless, Silver and other top producers wanted Barkley to apologize on TV to stamp out the complaints they were receiving.
Instead of apologizing, though, Chuck surprised everyone with a scathing monologue.
“Some of you people don’t like my sense of humor. This is what I gotta say, turn off your damn television. I’m not gonna change. If you don’t like me or the show, turn it off. And they want me to apologize, that’s not gonna happen,” Barkley said on TNT.
He was vehemently adamant that he was not going to apologize. In fact, when he was asked what he wasn’t apologizing for, he drove the nail home even further.
“What do they want you to apologize for?” Kenny Smith asked. “For me, joking about those big ol’ women down in San Antonio,” Barkley responded.
The response got a big laugh out of his co-hosts. For most, the approach would crash and burn and end up with them being fired. But because of his charm, Barkley got away with the comments
Chuck has continued to get away with his antics of walking the line between controversial and comedy. It’s what makes him who he is, and we all love that side of him. It was a bit harsh at first, but through time, most NBA fans have learned to embrace Barkley as a hilarious analyst.
