It’s the best time of the year for hockey fans, as the Stanley Cup Finals are on its way.
But if it’s something that we don’t really associate the SCF with, it’s Charles Barkley.
The former NBA player is now a broadcaster at TNT and has become a huge fan favorite both for basketball and hockey fans.
Charles Barkley absolutely loves hockey and everything about the sport and takes every opportunity to talk about it.
And on Monday, he made a surprise appearance during coverage of Game 2 between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers. And fans loved every second of it!
Barkley appeared alongside P.K. Subban, Steve Levy, and Mark Messier during one of ABC’s intermission talks, and he wasn’t shy in any way.
For instance, Barkley shared the most hilarious story about how Messier ’owes’ him $5,000.
”Hey, Mark owes me,” Barkley suddenly said shortly after being introduced to the viewers.
”He has never paid me. I took a delay of game, he was sitting courtside in Canada, and this is a true story. I said, ’I need to go talk to the great Mark Messier.’ They said I was going to ge a delay of play, and I said I don’t care. It was the first time I was around; he was sitting in the front row, and I said, ’I’ll take the fine.’ So, Mark, you owe me $5,000. That was like 25 years ago!’
Barkley also, hilariously, trolled his ’Inside the NBA’ friend Shaquille O’Neal, by saying he much more prefers to hang out with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, because of how great seats he gets him.
Fans absolutely loved Barkley having a blast during Game 2 of the SCF, and when he was later interviewed during the game, he even dropped an F-bomb on live TV! You just gotta love it!
