Charles Barkley gives Pelicans' Zion Williamson a lesson on how to fall in the NBA: 'Don’t be stupid'
A potentially scary moment for New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson Thursday night provided a teaching moment for NBA legend Charles Barkley.
During Thursday’s broadcast of the Pelicans-Kings game, the "NBA on TNT" crew was discussing what initially looked like a serious injury for Williamson.
Williamson, who was sidelined a week earlier with a bruised left finger, went down late in the second quarter with what appeared to be a left wrist injury. He was driving to the net when he fell and put his arms down to catch himself.
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He headed back to the locker room and later returned, but not before Barkley offered some advice.
"Do not catch yourself, man. I hate when players do that. Fall on your a-- or something," Barkley said.
Shaquille O’Neal then encouraged the 61-year-old Hall of Famer to demonstrate.
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"Show us. Show me right now. Fall on your a-- right now," Shaq said laughing.
Barkley complied.
"Don’t be stupid. Your body is too much – it’s got too much force," Barkley added. "You’re going to break your finger or your wrist. Fall on your a--."
Williamson returned to score 23 points in the second half and 31 total to help the Pelicans beat the Kings 135-123. He scored 26 Friday night to beat the Golden State Warriors 114-109 and help boost New Orleans’ playoff positioning.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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