Charles Barkley somehow mastered the art of the non-apology over dessert. Barkley famously—or perhaps infamously—hasn’t been very kind to the women of San Antonio over the years.
Barkley’s taunting of San Antonio women is possibly the longest-running fat shaming from a fat guy incident in American history. Back in 2014, Barkley said “there are some big ‘ol women down there” in reference to the Texas town the Spurs call home. That led to a lot of outrage and a poorly-written response segment that TNT aired later, but little was resolved.
On Monday night, however, Barkley finally “apologized” to those he offended years ago.
“I want to apologize to the women of San Antonio,” Barkley said. Ernie Johnson cut him off, asking what prompted the sudden apology for something that’s been going on “for a good 12 years.”
“Ernie, I had churros last night,” Barkley said with a smile. “I see what all the excitement is about. I had churros last night. Woooo. They’re damn good, Ernie. Them churros are good.”
Pardon the pun, but The Inside the NBA crew ate up the joke. Shaq had to leave his seat for a moment, and Johnson himself got a good laugh out of it, even when Barkley said his “big ‘ol women” line again. The broadcast then showed a photoshop of Barkley eating churros, for effect.
It’s obviously not a real apology, but in a way it shows off what makes Inside the NBA such a successful show. It’s one of the few shows on sports television that can pair the continued lowbrow humor and easy pot shots of a questionable figure like Barkley with the more subtle commentary of Johnson while also handling more emotional and personal moments.
Consider the “Gone Fishing” artwork the TNT crew put together for the Atlanta Hawks when they were finally sent packing by the Washington Wizards.
Hawks Gone Fishin' pic.twitter.com/rWiBPCXNjn
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) May 2, 2017
That’s American Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman on Dwight Howard‘s sweatshirt there. You know, the guy who burned Atlanta to the ground in his march to the sea. It’s a clever joke that speaks to the incendiary and sometimes self-destructive nature of much of Howard’s career.
That kind of intelligent commentary won’t ever come out of Barkley’s mouth, though. He’s too busy filling it with desserts.
