Charles Barkley on Donald Trump 'We have to give him a chance'

Charles Barkley, one of the more opinionated sports figures when it comes to race and politics, had not spoken publicly about Donald Trump's election as president of the United States … until Thursday night.

During TNT's Inside the NBA, Barkley led off the discussion about Trump's upcoming presidency. He said he was disappointed, but the Hall of Famer urged Americans to give Trump a chance.

He said:

"Well, Ernie. It's been kind of shell-shock, to be honest with you, the last 48 hours with Mr. Trump becoming the president. I was in shock, I'm not gonna lie. I was totally surprised at the election results. That being said, we've got to move on. I was disappointed because my candidate didn't win, number one. But like I said, it's over now. He's going to be the president of the United States. We've got to respect the office, and we have to give him a chance. That's the bottom line.

"Somebody always loses an election. We've been fortunate that we've won the last couple with President Obama. We didn't win this one. But like I said, I respect the office of the president of the United States, and we have to give him a chance. Everything he's said in the past, that's water under the bridge. We have to give him a chance, and we have to support him because he's the president of the United States of America."