In the realm of sports media, it came as a surprise news broke that TNT’s famous basketball pre- and post-game show “Inside the NBA” would be moving to ESPN.
One of its stars was just as shocked as the rest of us after finding out when everyone else did.
Charles Barkley, who stars on “Inside the NBA” alongside Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny “The Jet” Smith, recently said that there was no word from Warner Bros’ Discovery’s Turner Sports about the move before he learned when the news broke.
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Charles Barkley autographs during the In-Season Tournament game between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Los Angeles Lakers on December 7, 2023 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (NBA Photos/NBAE via Getty Images)
“I’ll tell you what’s fun,” Barkley said on “The Bettor Angle” show on BetQL network. “They haven’t even told us we lost the NBA.
“We have to hear it through the media. And even this thins with ABC/ESPN, I heard about it on the internet. Scott Van Pelt, Brian Windhorst, Elle Duncan, Bob Myers, all friends of whine who I really like a lot. They texted me welcoming me to the ESPN family. I’m like, ‘What happened?’ TNT didn’t even have the courtesy.”
CHARLES BARKLEY SAYS HE TURNED DOWN ‘MINIMUM OF $100 MILLION’ TO STAY WITH TNT
Barkley added that it felt like the “Inside the NBA” team “got traded,” but considering his time playing in the NBA, it’s common courtesy to let that person know before it makes the news.
“If I was going to trade somebody that I had respect for and appreciate, I would at least give them a heads up,” he said. “I wouldn’t let them hear about it from other people or the internet.”
Before this move, Barkley had been really vocal about Turner Sports’ rift with its NBA media rights, with “Inside the NBA,” a program the famous quartet have been a part of since 2000, potentially closing up shop.
Jan 21, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns former player Charles Barkley in attendance at Footprint Center. (Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
Back in August, after the NBA signed a new media rights deal with ESPN, NBC and Amazon Prime, Barkley said that he could’ve gone anywhere, but wanted to stay with the team he knew for over two decades. He later backtracked his statement that this season would be his last, saying he wanted to work with TNT leaders to develop new shows and more sports content.
TNT felt they weren’t able to fairly match the new deal, leading to a lawsuit that was eventually settled with the two sides inking multi-year agreements that would continue “Inside the NBA.”
Then, ESPN confirmed reports last week, saying an agreement was struck with TNT Sports where, except when the show goes on the road, TNT would continue independently produce the show from its Atlanta studios with the foursome intact. It will, however, appear on ESPN and ABC starting in the 2025-26 season.
TNT basketball analyst Charles Barkley on air before the NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the North Carolina State Wolfpack at State Farm Stadium on April 06, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
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Next season begins the 11-year media rights extension ESPN has with the NBA.
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