Charles Barkley’s decade‑long jokes about San Antonio spark a playful feud

Charles Barkley, former NBA star and commentator, has repeatedly joked about San Antonio’s women, the River Walk and the Alamo on the show Inside the NBA, creating a long‑running comedic “feud” with the city.

The jokes began in the early 2010s with remarks about “big ol’ women” and expanded in 2014 when Barkley linked the jokes to churros, a bit that went viral. The Spurs won the 2014 NBA championship while the jokes continued.

In 2017 Barkley appeared to apologize but quickly resumed the jokes. By 2021 TNT reportedly told him to stop the repeated comments. In 2024 he added barbs about the Alamo and River Walk on The Stephen A. Smith Show.

The latest episode occurred during the 2026 NBA Finals when San Antonio mayor Gina Ortiz Jones joined the Inside the NBA broadcast, handed Barkley churros as a tongue‑in‑cheek peace offering, and exchanged good‑natured banter.

Barkley later revisited the material at the 2025 March Madness Music Festival in San Antonio, underscoring the enduring nature of the comedy routine.