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NBA legend Charles Barkley made a surprise appearance during the coverage of Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers.
During the first intermission break, Barkley joined P.K. Subban, Steve Levy and Mark Messier on ABC coverage. When the broadcast commenced, Levy humorously introduced Barkley as the newest addition to ESPN's NBA coverage team. Barkley immediately turned his attention to Messier, exclaiming:
"Hey, Mark owes me $5000! He owes me $5000, he's never paid me. I took a delay of game — he was sitting courtside in Canada. This is a true story, I said, 'Ref, I need to go talk to the great Mark Messier.' He's like, 'Chuck, you're going to get a delay of game,' I said, 'I don't care!'"
Barkley continued his story, revealing that it was the first time he had ever been around Mark Messier. Despite the threat of a delay of game penalty, Barkley was determined to interact with the hockey legend.
"It was the first time I had been around him in my life. He was sitting on the front row, I said, 'I'll take the fine.' But Mark, you owe $5000. That was like 25 years ago," Barkley explained.
This incident highlighted the friendly banter between the two sports icons.
Charles Barkley accidentally dropped an F-bomb during an interview
While analyzing the series during the second intermission interview with Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas, Charles Barkley let loose with an accidental f-bomb while praising Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.
"Well, they played great in Game 1 but they didn’t win," Charles Barkley said of the Panthers. "Bobrovsky was f****** amazing. Oops, sorry. I’m sorry. He was freaking amazing. I apologize to y’all kids at home. He was freaking amazing.
"But you know, the Oilers man, they have been amazing. I picked them at the start of the playoffs. But the Panthers have been amazing, so I’m looking forward to the third period."
Barkley clearly got caught up in the moment, dropping the profanity while complimenting Bobrovsky's stellar play. He quickly apologized, correcting himself by using the word "freaking."
While the slip-up led to some viral headlines, it demonstrated Barkley's genuine excitement and emotional investment in the Stanley Cup Final.
