Cardi B Marks Knicks’ NBA Finals Win

What Cardi B wore for the Knicks celebration

Cardi, whose full name is Belcalis Almánzar, showed off the outfit in a short video, turning around so followers could see the full design of the jeans. She added a Knicks-orange purse and blue acrylic nails in support of the championship-winning team.

She also wore a diamond necklace and a watch, keeping the accessories expensive and the theme easy to read.

In a follow-up slide, the Grammy-winning artist posted another video in which she smiled while touching her chest, a detail that landed with extra context after the week’s earlier television moment.

How she became part of the Finals spotlight

Cardi was not just watching the Finals from the celebrity seats. She performed during halftime at Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, joining the Knicks City Dancers for the show.

During the set, she performed “Bodak Yellow” and “Bodega Baddie” while wearing a plunging bustier and leggings. The performance energized the arena and also, inevitably, gave the sports desk something to talk about.

That discussion quickly turned from the performance to Cardi’s body when ESPN personality Charles Barkley commented on her appearance while hosting “Inside the NBA” with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal.

What Charles Barkley said on air

Barkley, 63, made the remarks after Cardi’s halftime appearance, joking about the rapper’s breasts while on the broadcast.

“I don’t know if those B’s. They might be Cardi D’s,” the former NBA player said.

He continued, “I’m pretty sure those aren’t B’s.”

The comments drew laughter from his co-hosts. Johnson distanced himself from the line in real time, saying, “I don’t know who said that, but I know it wasn’t me.”

Barkley then added, “She’s got the wrong initials.”

The exchange spread quickly online, where plenty of viewers criticized the comments as crude. Cardi, at least publicly, did not appear especially bothered by them.

Barkley refused to apologize

Barkley later addressed the backlash during an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show,” where he made clear he was not planning a damage-control tour.

“I got six or seven years left on my contract that they know I’ve got no chance of doing,” he said.

“I would love for them to fire me and have to pay me for the next six or seven years,” the former Philadelphia 76ers player added.

Barkley also dismissed the criticism directly: “People can’t take a joke? They can kiss my ass. I appreciate all the support I’ve gotten all these years, but if anybody thinks like them, they’re a fool.”

So the sequence is simple enough: Cardi performed at the Finals, Barkley turned the postgame banter into a body-commentary segment, the internet reacted, and Cardi returned to Instagram with a Knicks-themed look that kept the attention firmly on her. Efficient, if not exactly quiet.