"Somebody named Osman": Spurs players catch strays from Charles Barkley despite producing goods during Bucks-Spurs
Charles Barkley and TNT’s “Inside the NBA” crew were covering the game between the Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs. Like most fans, the award-winning hosts were excited to see the first matchup between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama. The basketball world missed that opportunity last month when “Wemby” couldn’t play due to a sprained ankle.
The star-studded Bucks were once again expected to dominate the lackluster Spurs even with Wembanyama’s presence. However, San Antonio’s less heralded players stepped up big time and allowed the Spurs to put up a big fight until the final buzzer sounded.
After the game, Charles Barkley gave his thoughts about the game. Part of his comments will be something that Spurs fans will not be happy about:
(5:12 mark)
“Somebody named Osman gets 13 [points]. Then somebody named Keldon Johnson got 14 [points].”
Spurs players were getting strays from Barkley as the Philadelphia 76ers legend bemoaned about the Milwaukee Bucks’ lack of defensive identity. “Chuck” insisted that if the Bucks don’t change, they will have a hard time winning a playoff series against the top teams in the NBA. According to him, Milwaukee has to develop “defensive habits” in the regular season so those will carry over to the postseason.
Charles Barkley, though, as one of the most sought-after basketball analysts today, perhaps could have done better. Keldon Johnson is third in the San Antonio Spurs’ scoring hierarchy with 17.6 points per game before tonight’s encounter with the Bucks. Cedi Osman is one of the team’s best shooters as well.
For fans of “Inside the NBA,” Barkley’s mistake wasn’t surprising. The former Phoenix Suns star sometimes gets the name of players – particularly if they’re not superstars – wrong.
Charles Barkley loves the way Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama went after each other
Many were hoping that Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyam would spend most of Thursday night’s game guarding each other. Although that wasn’t always the case, the two had several occasions where they battled head-on. Every time they did, fireworks usually happened.
Charles Barkley gave a simple comment about the first tussle between Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama:
(2:15 mark)
“I love the fact that they were really going at each other.”
Barkley added that facing the likes of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Michael Jordan and Karl Malone always had his “antenna up.” The analyst couldn’t hide his excitement when the clip of the Antetokounmpo-Wembanyama highlights went up inside the TNT studio’s big screen.
Giannis Antetokounmpo showed that he’s one of the top players in the NBA after dropping 44 points against Victor Wembanyama. “Wemby” continued his pace as the league’s top shot blocker with five rejections in the game. The battle between the two lived up to the hype. Many, including Barkley, will be looking forward to the next round.