Charles Barkley Apologizes To Axios Reporter For ‘Unacceptable’ Comment

Charles Barkley’s big mouth has landed him in hot water.

The NBA legend and basketball analyst apologized to Axios political reporter Alexi McCammond on Wednesday morning for the “inappropriate and unacceptable” comment he made to her hours earlier. Barkley offered his apology to McCammond via Turner Sports’ Twitter account.

“My comment was inappropriate and unacceptable,” Barkley said in a statement. “It was an attempted joke that wasn’t funny at all. There’s no excuse for it and I apologize.”

McCammond on Wednesday night revealed Barkley directed the threatening “joke” at her after she questioned his preferred candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States.

“Just FYI Charles Barkley told me tonight ‘I don’t hit women but if I did I would hit you,’ and then when I objected to that he told me I ‘couldn’t take a joke,’ McCammond wrote in a tweet.

“There are almost no times I will beak an OTR ‘agreement’ but this is not OK. And it was all because he came in talking about how he loves (former Massachusetts governor) Deval Patrick and once someone from (South Bend, Ind., Mayor) Pete‘s (Buttigieg) campaign came around he said he loved Pete and I reminded him he previously said he was a Deval fan.”

Barkley has forged a notable second career by speaking his mind, but even he admittedly went too far in this instance.