Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley took another shot at the city of San Francisco when he made it clear he had no intention of going to the NBA All-Star Game.
Barkley spoke on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” about the All-Star candidacy of Detroit Pistons young star Cade Cunningham. With the Golden State Warriors set to host the game at Oracle Arena in San Francisco, Barkley said Cunningham will be there, but he won’t be.
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21 January 2023; Phoenix, Arizona: Former Phoenix Suns player Charles Barkley in attendance at the Footprint Center. (Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
“He’s going to make the All-Star Team,” Barkley said. “I’m not going. I’m not going to that rat-infested place out in San Francisco.”
Barkley responded to one of his colleagues calling San Francisco “beautiful”.
“San Francisco is not a pretty city. Rats. Cats. You will not make me like San Francisco. No. No, no, no”
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This is not the first time Barkley has criticized the city. Last year, he ripped San Francisco during the NBA’s alternate broadcast of the All-Star Game, which took place in Indianapolis.
College basketball analyst Charles Barkley on air before the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Final Four championship game. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
Barkley asked Miller what he would choose: playing in the cold in Indianapolis — where Miller spent his entire 18-year NBA career — or “being around a bunch of homeless thugs in San Francisco.”
Warriors star Draymond Green called Barkley “crazy” and said Barkley was not “welcome” in the city. WNBA star Candace Parker said “we love San Francisco,” but Barkley offered a retort.
“No we don’t,” he said. “… You can’t even walk around down there.”
Green was emphatic with his pushback.
“Yes you can walk around,” he said.
Barkley clapped back and said, “Yeah, with a bulletproof vest.”
November 15, 2024; San Francisco, California: Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) discusses a call with referee Brian Forte (45) in the third quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Chase Center. (D. Ross Cameron-Imagn photo)
New San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie has promised to make San Francisco’s streets safe again, build “enough housing to reverse our affordability crisis” and tackle “our drug and behavioral health crisis.”
