Shaquille O’Neal’s ties to the FBI led to a hilarious shot from Charles Barkley as Inside the NBA returned to the delight of NBA fans everywhere.
The NBA season is officially back, and while the basketball aspect of that is very exciting, fans are happy about more than just that. Inside the NBA with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal is back too, and they’re already going viral.
Shaq is known for being someone who has varied interests. His post-NBA career involves everything from receiving honorary doctorates, to becoming a DJ and selling out concerts. O’Neal has also had a history of being involved with law enforcement. Barkley brought that up on their first show of the season.
Charles Barkley hilariously asked whether he should ‘stand close’ to Shaquille O’Neal because of Kash Patel
FBI Director Kash Patel has dealt with several issues during his tenure at the head of the law enforcement agency. One of the lighter moments recently has been when he named the Los Angeles Lakers legend an honorary FBI Special Agent in September.
At that time, Shaq even joked that his Inside the NBA co-host Barkley should be arrested. While they were covering the Miami Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves game, Chuck finally responded.
“Should we be standing this close to Shaq? He’s been hanging out with Kash Patel. That’s dangerous,” Barkley said, leading to laughter from all his co-hosts. Ernie Johnson added, “Ooh! Ooh! Oh, I didn’t know you were going there. But I should have known you would.”
Having the NBA legends back is likely to lead to a lot more moments that will crack fans up. Nothing is off limits when it comes to Barkley, and his tongue-in-cheek comments to Shaq are what make the show what it is.
Read more: