“You’re So Much More Beautiful Than Shaq”: Charles Barkley Befriends Candace Parker to Cope With Best Mate’s Abandonment on Live TV

The Inside Crew was one man down today but filling in for him was WNBA superstar, Candace Parker. Charles Barkley had a ball with the substitute analyst. He’s even making a pitch for her continued presence on the panel in place of Shaquille O’Neal. He was all praise for The Ace which would make Shaq rather jealous, as Chuck never calls him beautiful.

In fact, Barkley doesn’t even believe Big Diesel is one of the ten sexiest bald men in the world. But he does very little to dampen Shaq’s spirit.

Charles Barkley hypes fill-in analyst

While Shaquille O’Neal played color commentator for the day, Candace Parker took his spot in the TNT studio. And Charles Barkley did not miss his best friend at all.

At one point, he was praising Parker for simply existing. “You’re so much more beautiful than Shaq,” he said. “You’re so much smarter than Shaq. You weigh like 375 pounds less than Shaq. You’ve been a great addition to the show.” He probably also enjoys that she doesn’t argue with him at every sentence like a certain giant.

O’Neal was tapped by the NBA to call the Bucks-Heat game with Reggie Miller. While he was occupied arguing with Miller, Barkley’s work day was brightened with Parker’s presence. He wanted to make it a status quo, declaring, “About time y’all fired that big lug.” 

Parker is still on the high of her third WNBA championship title. She can now add ‘NBA analyst’ to her resume too. The Inside Crew noted that she had a lot to flex about her new job. Parker had several updates to share on her Instagram Stories from her day. She even placed herself as the strongest contender to win the TNT tradition of racing the board.

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Shaq has not given his two cents about his substitute. But he’s got to be bitter that the Inside Guys are Parker’s hype team – a courtesy that wasn’t extended to his latest accomplishment.

Inside Guys rip Shaq’s new title to shreds

The top 10 sexiest bald men stirred up the Internet last week. Coming in at No.9 was the one and only Shaquille O’Neal, beating out the mane-challenged NBA analysts of Inside the NBA. They were so jealous they couldn’t let Shaq bask in it.

Kenny “The Jet” Smith asked him, “How much did you pay to get on this list?” Candace’s biggest fan, Barkley pointed out this list is on GQ South Africa. “Sexy in South Africa but ugly as hell in Atlanta.”

They couldn’t stop Shaq from ‘seducing’ the camera. And at the Miami game, he said, “Damn I look good.” Look up to his daughter to know how to ‘keep Shaq humble 101’. Sadly for Barkley, Shaq’s going to be back on TNT for the next games.

READ MORE: “Never Done That Before”: Charles Barkley’s Analysis on Bucks’ Superstar Duo Could Worry Milwaukee Fans