WATCH: Charles Barkley takes hilarious shot at Jayson Tatum during ESPN Stanley Cup appearance
Charles Barkley played basketball like a hockey player during his time in the NBA. So it’s no surprise that ESPN hosted Chuck as a guest on its Stanley Cup broadcast. When Barkley visited, the Tampa Bay Lightning scored a goal, which he was asked to break down.
Barkley explained that the Avalanche player had turned the puck over by saying it “was a regular ole Jayson Tatum turnover,” throwing shade at the NBA All-Star and Boston Celtic. Chuck isn’t wrong. Tatum led the league in turnovers in the Playoffs, accumulating 100 giveaways over the course of 24 postseason games. 100 turnovers also marks the all time record in one postseason, surpassing LeBron James’ 94 in 2017-18.
Barkley then went on to give astute analysis of how the Lightning broke down the Avalanche for the lead-taking goal. “Listen,” Chuck demanded, “that’s just a heck of a goal and a heck of a pass,” he said of the score.
Afterward, though, Barkley assured Jayson Tatum that he was just joking and the turnover joke was nothing personal. You can watch for yourself below:
What do we think of Charles Barkley: Hockey Analyst? His breakdown was pretty spot-on right there. That was a heck of a pass leading to a heck of a goal by Ondrej Palat. Now that basketball season is over, Chuck can finally spread his wings and offer up such brilliant perspective on all sports, not just hoops.
Lightning save Stanley Cup hopes with win
With Barkley’s blessing, Tampa Bay continued on their tear throughout the other periods, pouring the goals on the Avalanche to eventually win 6-2. That’s their first win of the series after losing the first two games in Colorado to the Avalanche. The series will stay in Tampa for another game where the Lightning will hope to even up the series before heading back on the road.
This Lightning are the winners of the last two Stanley Cups, in 2020 and 2021. 2022 would represent the three-peat. So history is on the line for the Tampa Bay dynasty.