Shaq and Barkley Label Carmelo Anthony Soft for Confronting Fans: For ‘Warriors Like Me and Chuck’ that Don’t Bother You’

Last year, Charles Barkley said NBA players should be able to “beat the hell” out of fans, now he thinks Carmelo Anthony is soft for confronting one.

During the Lakers-76ers game in Philadelphia Thursday night, Anthony furiously confronted a group of fans who were taunting him. Later, Anthony acknowledged he was being called “boy” by two groups of fans and felt the harassment was “unacceptable.”

Following the game, TNT’s Inside the NBA crew addressed the incident, with Kenny Smith defending Anthony for confronting the fans and ultimately having them ejected.

“That’s what somebody who’s soft would say,” Shaquille O’Neal argued. “When you’re warriors like me and Chuck, that don’t bother you anyway. When you’re warriors like us, that ain’t gonna stop me. I played in Texas, played in the SEC, I heard it all. That ain’t gonna stop me.”

“I’m not gonna get upset about somebody calling me ‘boy,’” Barkley said. “Come on man, stop tripping. That to me is no big deal, some guy calling me a boy…You can’t be thin-skinned in sports. Especially the Lakers stink and they’re in Philly.”

Barkley, who infamously spit on a fan when he was a player, acknowledged there are lines that can be crossed, but didn’t believe calling someone “boy” defied that boundary.

Last season, Barkley made it clear he believes throwing popcorn at a player was line crossing. After Russell Westbrook had popcorn dumped on him by a Philly fan, Barkley ranted, “I think you should be able to go up in the stands and beat the hell out of one person per game.”

Watch above via TNT