Barkley: Bill Russell flipping me off 'was one of the coolest things ever'

Charles Barkley didn't take offense to Bill Russell flipping him the bird during the NBA Awards show on Monday night.

Barkley addressed the middle finger incident while appearing on "The Jim Rome Podcast" on Tuesday, admitting that he had a hard time finishing his presentation speech because he found it so funny.

"I thought it was one of the coolest things ever to happen to me," Barkley said. "Because Bill's a mentor, he's like a father to me, and he does stuff to everybody. It meant a lot to me because, if you know Bill - well, I don't even call him Bill, Mr. Russell - he is one of the best people ever.

"I was laughing so hard. I almost couldn't keep reading ... I almost fell, I was laughing so hard inside. I didn't want to stop and interrupt (Oscar) Robertson getting his Lifetime Achievement Award. I thought it was really funny."

Russell issued an apology on his Twitter account later that night, calling the inappropriate gesture "pure instinct."