Charles Barkley threatens to slap Ernie Johnson in the head with a churro

Charles Barkley committed two flagrant fouls on Inside the NBA. He threatened to waste a churro and he threatened to hit Ernie Johnson.

Early Wednesday morning, as the NBA on TNT crew discussed Tuesday’s slate of games, Barkley received some pushback after he noted how odd it was that the Suns and Spurs were playing consecutive games against each other in Phoenix.

“It happens,” Ernie Johnson insisted. “No, in the last few years it happened a lot. Pay attention, man. It happens…it’s happened plenty of times, so it’s not that rare.”

Believing that back-to-backs between the same teams are usually home-and-homes, Barkley reached for an assist from Inside the NBA’s producer, asking whether the Suns and Spurs playing two games in Phoenix was an oddity.

“He said it started happening during Covid,” Barkley relayed. “That’s the difference. That’s the only reason they did it, during Covid, because teams couldn’t travel.”

“But it’s continued, okay?” Johnson said, as he leaned back in his chair while fixing his jacket and bowtie, seemingly enjoying that win over Barkley. “So, there you go.”

Johnson was right, teams do play consecutive games in the same city, but Barkley thought the Covid footnote gave himself credence to take a victory lap.

“Don’t yell at me on TV,” an irked Barkley fired back at Johnson. “I’ll slap you in the head with one of them churros.”

Well, that seems unnecessary. There’s no need to threaten Ernie Johnson, one of the sweetest people in sports media. And there’s definitely no need to waste a churro, one of the sweetest treats in the world. Johnson’s rarely on the receiving end of any hijinks from the NBA on TNT crew, but Barkley couldn’t take being shown up by the show’s captain.

Barkley also couldn’t shake the thought of churros after his awkward exchange with Victor Wembanyama. Wemby appeared staggered after Barkley asked him to say churro in French just a few minutes before his exchange with Johnson. Perhaps frustrated, Barkley sought to slap Johnson with a churro instead.

[NBA on TNT]