“Chuck You Was in Australia?”: Shaquille O’Neal and Inside the NBA Crew ‘Accuse’ Charles Barkley of 10,000 Donut Robbery in Australia

A recent bizarre robbery of 10,000 Krispy Kreme doughnuts in Carlingford, Sydney, Australia, brought forth some hilarious consequences for Inside the NBA’s Charles Barkley. According to NY Times, the driver of a doughnut truck had made a quick stop at a 7-Eleven which led to a woman taking control of the truck and driving away with the doughnuts that were on their way to Newcastle. 

The incident had nothing to do with Charles Barkley. However, his fellow TNT analysts thought that it was the perfect opportunity for a prank, as Ernie Johnson initially spoke about the robbery. 

“You know there was an interesting story from Down Under from Australia…Some robbery, some donuts stolen,” he said, which brought forth a hilarious question from Kenny Smith, obviously directed at Barkley. “Chuck you was in Australia?” Smith wanted to know hilariously, implying Chuck was the thief in question. “You don’t need 10,000 donuts. You only need like 10,” Chuck argued in his defense, to no avail.

Meanwhile, Ernie commented whether the robber in Australia had a “donut-loving accomplice” to help them, as the camera panned to the extent of evidence they had ‘gathered’ against Barkley. This included his car, which had been filled with Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. “You’all put donuts in my damn car?” Barkley was already protesting.

 

Remnants of eaten Krispy Kreme treats could also be seen in Chuck’s chair in the green room. The camera then moved to his locker, which along with a huge number of donuts also had a wig. Barkley was aghast to see that even Rob, the cameraman looking around his stuff, was in on the prank.

When a donut fell out Barkley’s jacket which he had left on the studio chair, Rob went on to vigorously shake it. Out fell dozens of donuts again, which all but proved Barkley’s involvement in the robbery down under, as far as his fellow analysts were concerned. The hilarious prank set up by the TNT crew left everyone holding their belly at the expense of the Chuckster’s love for Krispy Kreme.

Charles Barkley is famous for his love for donuts

Barkley’s love for donuts is as perennial as his stint with TNT. Back in 2016, Barkley received a consignment of 53 dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts as his 53rd birthday gift. 

Chuck has over the years often talked about his love for doughnuts, which was evident in the clip above as well. He claimed from personal experience that a person only needed around 10 doughnuts at a time.

His love for the glazed treats is of course, also to the benefit of his close friend Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq owns Krispy Kreme’s Ponce de Leon Avenue franchise in Atlanta, and once joked that Chuck was his biggest customer. That can be expected, considering the location is only 4 miles away from Studio J, where Inside the NBA is filmed.