It’s playoff time, so Inside the NBA is on your big-screen almost every night. Just more opportunities for hilarious moments between the TNT crew.
The latest was just this past week (as of this posting) as Sir Charles Barkley fired off a comment that was almost – but not quite – too much for the prime-time show, and definitely had his buddy Shaquille O’Neal with an eyebrows-raised experience.
During the game between the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat, Barkley must have had a bit of a “senior moment,” as he mistook / mis-named Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson as NFL cornerback Jalen Ramsey. The good news was that he caught himself and didn’t need any help from his co-hosts. The really interesting part was his follow-up comments, using a little football terminology in – shall we say – a very interesting way. Barkley finished by saying, “He never got a tight end like me.”
Thankfully, Inside the NBA pointman Ernie Johnson was ready to jump in as the adult on the set. He immediately issued a “stop it,” to Barkley, just like a school teacher might need to do to keep a rowdy class in line.
Shaq didn’t have to say anything at this point…but he did stare around the set for a bit, rolling his eyes. Johnson saw the reaction, and would only add a simple, “I know.”
One of the best parts of the show is that we never know if the funny lines and physical humor is scripted or made up on the spot. (We’re guessing it’s mostly ad-libbed in the moment.)
Shaq’s stunned reaction was simply to remove his glasses, scratch his forehead, and offer Barkley a look of absolute befuddlement. Barkley tried to continue down his football tangent, touting his ability as a tight end in high school. But it was clear that Shaq couldn’t get over hearing his partner boast about his tight end on national television.
Indeed, in an interview just as the playoffs were getting underway, show frontman Ernie Johnson told USA Today SPORTS that when it comes to what’s called “show prep” in the TV business, there’s just about none of that for Inside the NBA.
Johnson: “Improvising and letting it rip is exactly how we like to do the show,” Johnson said. That certainly seems to be how the crew of Johnson, Shaq, Barkley and Kenny Smith like it, and do their best work. Stay tuned! Another great moment is probably coming soon to a TV near you…
