The NBA season is only two days old, but Charles Barkley was already in form during Wednesday night’s broadcast of “NBA Tip-Off” from the show’s Atlanta studio, catching host Ernie Johnson off guard with a joking remark about Shaquille O’Neal’s connection to FBI Director Kash Patel.
“Hey, Kenny. Should we be standing this close to Shaq?” Barkley asked fellow analyst Kenny Smith during the pregame show.
“Why is that?” Smith responded.
“He’s been hanging out with Kash Patel,” Barkley said. “That’s dangerous.”
Johnson, visibly caught off guard, laughed and said, “Oh!! Oh! Oh, I didn’t know you were gonna be going there. But I should have known you would.”
O’Neal, laughing along with the rest of the crew, replied, “Alright, Chuck. Alright, Chuck.”
Barkley then added, “I got your back, big fella. We can hang out with who the hell we want to.”
A Years-Long Atlanta Broadcast
“Inside the NBA” has broadcast from its Atlanta studio for more than three decades under Johnson’s leadership. Kenny Smith, a two-time NBA champion, joined the show in 1998, Barkley came aboard in 2000, and O’Neal became a permanent cast member in 2011.
The Honorary FBI Title Behind the Joke
Barkley’s remark referenced Patel’s decision in September to name O’Neal an honorary FBI special agent. Patel announced the honor in a Sept. 17 post on X, writing, “This session is historic – FBI was honored to be joined by one of the best supporters of law enforcement in the country -Shaq- who graduated with this session and became an honorary FBI Special Agent.”
At his graduation ceremony, O’Neal joked that Barkley could be his first arrest, telling the graduating class, “Some of you will go back to your regular jobs, some of you will go to specialized training. Some of you will go do what I do, be undercover. Well, I was undercover… But I just wanna say I appreciate you guys so much. Congratulations. I am not here for this; I am here for you… And if you see Charles Barkley, arrest him.”
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