Charles Barkley tells hilarious NBA uniform-washing story: ‘Easier to do it that way’

Charles Barkley continues to be a riot.

Barkley was holding court with Greg Gumbel, Clark Kellogg and Kenny Smith on CBS/Turner’s NCAA Tournament coverage on Friday, and Sir Charles broke into a legendary aside about how he used to wash his own NBA uniform in the shower.

The anecdote began with Barkley, 60, throwing a bone to equipment managers.

“Shout-out to all the trainers, and the guys who do all the uniforms,” Barkley said.

“To get these uniforms cleaned up and everything — I’m so old, we used to take a shower in our uniforms.”

Kenny Smith interrupted: “Time out. There’s no era where you did this. You’re making this up. There’s no way that you were supposed to wash your uniform. You’re making this up. No one in their right mind has ever done that.”

Barkley insisted it was true.

“When I first got to the NBA, we flew commercial,” said Barkley, who drafted fifth overall by the 76ers in 1984.

“So when you played the night before, and flew the next morning, when was you exactly going to get your uniform clean? You had to wash your uniform yourself.


Charles Barkley in 1991.
Charles Barkley in 1991.
NBAE via Getty Images

“So, after the game, when you got to your room, you took a shower in your uniform and dried it and dropped it on the commercial plane the next day.”

Clark Kellogg weighed in, saying, “You can clean your uniform without showering in it.”

Smith backed up Kellogg, telling Barkley that “you don’t need to have it on” to clean it.

Nevertheless, Barkley, who The Post previously reported is considering a CNN show, persisted.

“No, but it’s easier to do it that way,” he said.


Charles Barkley told a wild story about how he used to wash his own jersey in the shower.
Charles Barkley told a wild story about how he used to wash his own jersey in the shower.
CBS Sports

Based on Barkley’s insistence, it seems reasonable to conclude that he was not making this story up.

It’s wild to think back to a day in the NBA where the players flew commercial and were responsible for cleaning their own uniforms, but it apparently was not all that long ago.

source: nypost.com