One of the NBA‘s most prominent voices joked that he isn’t willing to attend the NBA All-Star Game set to be held in San Francisco this year.
During Thursday night’s episode of ‘Inside the NBA’, analyst Charles Barkley said he has no intention of stepping foot into the city.
While highlights of Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham played, Barkley went on his tirade against the city.
‘Listen, he’s gonna make the All-Star Game,’ Barkley said of Cunningham before noting he’ll be passing on attending the marquee event.
‘I’m not going. I’m not going to that rat-infested place out in San Francisco.’
When co-analyst Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith remarked that The City By The Bay is ‘beautiful’, Barkley immediately pushed back.
‘San Francisco is not a beautiful city!’ Barkley retorted. ‘Rats. Cats…Y’all are not gonna make me like San Francisco. No. Nope, nope, nope, nope.’
The All-Star Game is set to be held at the Chase Center in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood. The arena opened in 2019 to host the Golden State Warriors.
Barkley has been in San Francisco many times before. Despite his protestations, it’s likely he’ll be there again this year.
But Barkley, who played 16 seasons in the NBA, has been known for his beef with different cities in the past.
Most notably, Barkley has ragged on the city of San Antonio for years on ‘Inside’ – repeatedly making jokes about the women of the city – to the point where it’s become a recurring joke on the broadcast.
Last year, he got in trouble again for poking fun at another Texas city, Galveston, saying the coastal city had ‘dirty a** water’.
