TNT analyst and “Inside the NBA” mainstay Charles Barkley said on Tuesday's ESPN Chicago radio show that he is “100 percent” concerned about the future of TNT and the NBA. Ta.
TNT Sports is battling NBC for the final piece of the NBA's upcoming television rights deal. Amazon Prime Video and ESPN/ABC already have a deal in place that will last at least a decade, and TNT's current deal with the NBA ends after the 2024-25 season.
When asked about the future of “Inside the NBA,” Barkley, who has been a broadcaster since 2000, said a studio program official said, “We have no idea what's going to happen.”
“We could lose it. I feel really bad for the guys I work with. It's cruel,” he told ESPN Chicago's Tom Waddle and Mark Silverman. “Everyone is scared to death.”
“Inside the NBA” first aired in 1989 and has become a staple of NBA broadcasts. Current studio staff members Barkley, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O'Neal have been together since O'Neal joined the show in 2011. Johnson has hosted the show since 1990, and Smith joined in 1998.
TNT Sports has broadcast the NBA for nearly 40 years.
Charles Barkley talks about his future with TNT @NBA
“I’m worried…100%.”
Full interview: https://t.co/MqIrVh1020@waddleandsilvy @twaddle87 @tyleraki_ @Jeff_Meller pic.twitter.com/yx3zDJ6P0q
— ESPN1000 (@ESPN1000) May 14, 2024
A deal with TNT or NBC is expected to include biennial conference finals, as opposed to TNT's current every-season setup. Both networks are expected to maintain broadcasts of the annual All-Star Game. The reported asking price is $2.5 billion per season.
Barkley went on to say that he thinks it's “50-50” that TNT loses part of its media rights deal with NBC, but that the station's history of partnership with the league could prove beneficial. He said he was looking forward to it. TNT has held the rights to broadcast NBA games since 1989.
“You would think that if there was a close bidding war, we would be given the benefit of the doubt, but clearly that is not the case,” he said.
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