Charles Barkley has been engaged in his share of verbal spats over the years, but rarely has the loquacious commentator taken on an entire city.
The Basketball Hall of Famer and NBA commentator is in hot water after making some disparaging comments about San Antonio. He called the San Antonio River a "dirty creek," and even worse, trashed the city's women. This comes two years after Barkley said there are "no skinny women in San Antonio."
"They do have some big, ol' women down there, I mean, come on, now," he said last week on TNT's Inside the NBA. Barkley, who has been a spokesman for Weight Watchers, called San Antonio a "gold mine" for the weight-loss company.
He also added this one-liner:
"Victoria is definitely a secret [in San Antonio] ... they can't wear no Victoria's Secret down there."
The backlash to Barkley's comments came fast and furious. First from the San Antonio River Authority:
“The problem with Charles Barkley's recent comments about the San Antonio River is that they are less accurate than his golf swing,” SARA general manager Suzanne Scott said in a release. “But, we take his comments with good humor and are glad to have the opportunity to set the record straight.”
And rather than have Mayor Julian Castro respond to Barkley, as he did two years ago, several councilwomen took on the "Round Mound of Rebound." They noted how San Antonio's obesity rate has actually dropped below the state average.
A local artist added this shot at Barkley:
San Antonio artist fires back at Charles Barkley with amazing mural http://t.co/YKycJYwwIY pic.twitter.com/Mm3lXeNzoY
— For The Win (@ForTheWin) May 13, 2014
Barkley has seen the reaction and, perhaps not surprisingly, refused to backtrack from his comments.
"They want me to apologize?" he said on TNT. "That's not gonna happen."
The spat has inspired good-natured humor in some San Antonio residents. Raymond Diaz, co-owner of the San Antonio restaurant Everybody Loves Raymond’s, is now offering a "Charles Barkley Fat Mexican Burger."
