Charles Barkley preparing for a different future with TNT after next NBA season
Charles Barkley and the crew of Inside the NBA will have to wait and see how TNT works to continue their show after the 2024-25 season.
Charles Barkley reaffirmed his commitment to TNT and the Inside the NBA show
After the NBA signed the new $76 billion media rights, it was evident that their longstanding relationship with TNT would come to an end after the next season. That also threw the broadcasting future of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith into doubt.
Shaquille O’Neal has a lot of things on his plate, Kenny Smith might want to dabble with front office management and Ernie Johnson will likely retire. That leaves Charles Barkley, who had initially declared that he will retire after next season. He then retracted that statement by reaffirming his commitment to TNT.
Front Office Sports ran an article where they revealed that the Hall of Famer is relaunching his Round Mound Media production company. Barkley has been able to garner some investment from Turner Sports boss Jeff Zucker. Earlier, he had hinted that he might bring his Inside the NBA crew together to his own production house but it looks unlikely now.
Rather, Barkley is building a portfolio of shows and documentaries in case the Inside the NBA crew decides to disband after the NBA contract is over. While Charles Barkley might be wanted by the media rights deal winner, the fact that his production company is working with TNT suggests he is looking for a long-term solution.
Charles Barkley does not want to start afresh elsewhere
When news of the media rights deal hit the basketball world, the question everyone asked was if the winning companies wanted to recreate Inside the NBA with the existing crew. When Charles Barkley was asked those questions, he made it clear that the crew might not want to do so.
The former league MVP made it clear that he had no intention of starting all over again in a new environment. Instead, he was concerned about the jobs the current staff of the show were about to lose.
Charles Barkley restarting his own production house to work with TNT suggests he is on to something. He could be working towards a solution where his colleagues are all part of that production. With one season of Inside the NBA still to go, the situation surrounding Barkley could develop further.
Joseph Varghese
(1666 Articles Published)