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“You’ve Always Been Ugly Shaquille O’Neal”: $200 Million Charles Barkley Cuts Off Kenny Smith To Insult The NBAonTNT Host

Samir Mehdi
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“You’ve Always Been Ugly Shaquille O’Neal”: $200 Million Charles Barkley Cuts Off Kenny Smith To Insult The NBAonTNT Host

Shaquille O’Neal joining the set of ‘Inside the NBA’ was one of the greatest decisions taken in the history of sports commentary. Turner Sports had already built something incredible special with Charles Barkley and the rest of the crew after they had recruited him the second he retired from the Rockets in 2000. 

They followed suit with ‘The Big Aristotle’. Due to complications with his Achilles, Shaq was forced to retire following a 19-year career, ending it with the Boston Celtics. It would be in this same year that Turner Sports would approach him to come on board. 

For over a decade, Charles Barkley and Shaq have been warming television sets around the globe with their banter. They have said on multiple occasions that they feel like they’re brothers and that certainly comes off across the screen.

Also read: Shaquille O’Neal, Who weighed 370lbs, Once Wanted to Kill Kobe Bryant over an “Unreleased Article”

Charles Barkley roasts Shaquille O’Neal for being ugly 

Another day, another quip from Charles Barkley poking fun at Shaquille O’Neal. While Shaq has remained fairly one-dimensional in his roasts over Chuck, mainly calling him ‘ringless’, Chuck has been quite creative over the years. 

Well, it seems as though he threw that creativity out the window and settled for ol’ reliable ‘You’re ugly’. He would hilariously go out of his way to interrupt Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith’ train of thought to call the 4x NBA champion ugly and also ‘fugly’.

 

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At this point, O’Neal is used to this all, as they all are, and all he could do was sit back and laugh as Barkley’s timing was indeed, quite hilarious. The ‘Inside the NBA’ crew has always felt like a fraternity between men who genuinely love each other and so jokes/quips like this make it all the more heartwarming to see, even after decades of being on the same set together. 

Turner Sports locks down Charles Barkley and the crew 

Charles Barkley stated for the longest time that he didn’t want to be 60 years old and die on television. His goal had always been to accumulate a substantial amount of wealth by the time he turns 60 and then retire. 

Well, this didn’t work out all too well as Turner Sports approached him earlier this year and signed him to a contract that is reportedly worth anywhere between $100 million and $200 million. That kind of money just to talk hoops is quite wild so of course, Chuck stayed and will be on air for another decade.

Also read: “Nikola Jokic Is The Tim Duncan Of Our Time”: Shaquille O’Neal Boldly Compares The 2x MVPs

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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