TNT NBA Host ernie johnson A report Thursday said he has no plans to resign from his longtime employer even if he loses his rights to the NBA.
tom friend of sports business journal reported Thursday that Johnson is expected to remain with Warner Bros. Discovery even if it loses the rights to the NBA.of wall street journal According to reports this week, Comcast is willing to bid more than $2.5 billion annually for the NBA rights currently held by WBD, which will pay WBD $1.2 billion annually through the end of next season.
Johnson has been with TNT Sports (formerly known as Turner Sports) since 1989 and has been the primary host for NBA Studios since 1990. SBJJohnson will continue to host coverage of the NCAA men's basketball tournament on TNT and CBS and is “likely” to return to MLB play-by-play.
It's unclear whether Johnson will need to leave TNT to continue covering the NBA. Amazon, which is widely expected to acquire the NBA package in a new rights deal, has tapped rival networks' broadcasts for its own programming. thursday night football Scope — Carissa Thompson fox sports kirk herbstreit ESPN.
Bob Costas The NBA did not follow ESPN when NBC lost its broadcast rights in 2002, but ESPN pursued him and allowed him to continue covering the Olympics on NBC. Brent Musburger By the time CBS and the NBA ended their 17-year run in 1990, CBS had already been fired. Neither was in charge of the NBA for as long as Johnson.
Since then, WSJ There were reports that Comcast's bid had fallen apart on Monday, but much of the ensuing discussion centered on the fate of the acclaimed TNT studio show “Inside the NBA” and Johnson's quartet. . Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal and kenny smith. Barkley said in a radio interview this week that his 10-year contract includes an opt-out in case WBD loses his NBA rights, something he made public when announcing his contract last year. It was known.
