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Charles Barkley hilariously threatens Stephen A. Smith with a ‘whooping’
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Charles Barkley and Stephen A. Smith are part of TNT Sports and ESPN’s collaborative coverage of the NBA In-Season Tournament. And with each of the network’s most bombastic personalities staked out in Las Vegas and sharing the air, things went about how you’d expect.
Barkley shouted out ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, Adrian Wojnarowski, Bob Myers, and Malika Andrews during an appearance on “NBA Countdown” with his “Inside the NBA” cast members, calling Andrews fantastic and thanking Wilbon for being a “mentor” and a “friend” during his broadcasting career.
Then he addressed Smith.
“Let me tell you something, Stephen A.,” Barkley said. “If you come over here with all that loud a** talking today — hey, this ain’t ‘First Take’. This gonna be the first to a** whooping you take if you come over here with that loud a** talking.”
What a moment.
How long do we think Charles Barkley workshopped this one?
"This ain't First Take. This is gonna be the first to ass whooping you take if you come over here with that loud ass talk." pic.twitter.com/Z3iiPnnCiH
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2023
As for the tournament itself, the semifinals are Thursday at T-Mobile Arena, setting up Saturday’s final. The Indiana Pacers punched their ticket with a 128-119 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, and they’ll face either the Los Angeles Lakers or the New Orleans Pelicans.
Regardless of the result, we’ll always have Barkley’s priceless, hilarious exchange with Smith as a keepsake.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
