Charles Barkley speaks on his next move if TNT loses NBA media rights

Charles Barkley.

With NBC and Amazon Prime reportedly emerging as frontrunners to join ESPN/ABC as the NBA’s next media rights partners, basketball fans could soon be deprived of the weekly unscripted banter provided by Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal for the hit show “Inside the NBA.”

In a recent interview with 850 ESPN Cleveland, Barkley opened up about the possibility of the Emmy Award-winning show ending at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season, with the NBA broadcasting its games via its new media partners.

Barkley revealed that he prepared himself for the inevitability of WBD/TNT losing the NBA rights when he signed a 10-year contract in 2022.

“It’s a really big deal, obviously, but I covered my a–, to be honest with you,” Barkley said. “…I just signed a 10-year deal two years ago, but one of the things I did was I put an opt-out after a couple years because I wanted to make sure I cover my a– when it comes to this situation.”

The former NBA MVP hinted at the possibility of recreating the show’s format elsewhere after potentially becoming a free agent in 2025.

“I am actually in a really great position,” Barkley said. “Whether we go to … we knew it was going to be Amazon and Apple, but we didn’t know NBC was going to come out of the woodwork … I love TNT, they’ve been great to me … but I wanted to make sure that if we lost the NBA in two years, I could be a free agent.”

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