Charles Barkley is one of the most outspoken analysts in all of sports. On some occasions, that can be a bad thing for Sir Charles and it’s hard to fathom this clip not falling into that category. TNT has a habit of showing interesting things in the arena going to break and took this occasion to show a Celtics fan wearing what looks to be a cross between kingly garb and a marching band outfit. What Charles says first isn’t so bad, “please don’t have no kids.” It’s what Chuck (maybe) says next that may cause some trouble for TNT and the NBA..
It’s hard to make it out at the end of the video, but it sure sounds like that’s Charles Barkley using a slur to describe that fan’s outfit. Considering Kobe Bryant was fined $100,000 for saying that word on the bench, one has to wonder what’s in store for Barkley. Again, it’s hard to definitively be sure, but if that’s him on the video calling that fan a homophobic slur, he’s going to have to be sat down for a period of time.
UPDATE: After listening to the clip several more times, it also could very well be Kenny Smith saying, “C’mon man, he’s dressed like a fan, same thing as puttin’ on paint.” It’s too close to call, so it looks like we’ll just move on.
UPDATE II: TNT confirms that audio is definitely Smith saying the word “fan.”
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