NEW ORLEANS — The Pelicans season is over after they were swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Hours after their season-ending loss, the TNT crew sent them off to Galveston.
It's part of the segment Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal do each year when a team is eliminated from the postseason.
They usually say they are sending teams off to Cancun as they pretend to fish.
But this year, the Pelicans received a different treatment.
Following their game three loss, Charles Barkley said the Pelicans didn't deserve to go to Cancun because of their poor playoff performance.
O’Neal played a part in the conversation by asking Barkley where the Pelicans should go once they're knocked out.
“We’re not even going to send them to Cancun,” Barkley responded. “We’re going to send them to Galveston, where that dirty a**water be washing up on the shore and you people think you’re at the beach.”
Visit Galveston has since responded. In a Facebook post on Sunday, they said, "Charles Barkley, here I was thinking we were cool, and then you go throwing shade like we’re strangers. What’s up with that?"
On Monday, Visit Galveston responded again on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying the Pels are always welcome in Galveston.
"Win or lose, Pelicans are always welcome in Galveston. We invite you to join our flock as we roll out the coastal red carpet for some much-deserved offseason R&R. TinaKnowles & Mike Evans13, help us get more pelicans on Island Time? #CharlesBarkley is not invited," the official Twitter account of historic Galveston Island said in a tweet.
Barkley continued tearing into the Galveston Beach Monday night. He even guaranteed that the Pelicans would lose before the game.
The Pelicans' "Gone fishin'" send-off included CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, the King Cake Baby, Beyonce, Tina Knowles, and Jay-Z. During it Barkley called the King Cake Baby ugly and said it was the ugliest mascot in the world.
The Los Angeles Lakers also joined the Pels on the beach after they were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets.
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