Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Inside the NBA crew a target for Amazon Prime after winning bid

Amazon Prime won the bid against TNT for the NBA media rights deal.

Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Inside the NBA crew a target for Amazon Prime after winning bid

Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal and Inside the NBA crew a target for Amazon Prime after winning NBA media rights bid

It is now clear that the iconic show, Inside the NBA, will not return after the end of the 2025 season. The NBA deciding to sign with Amazon Prime has effectively ended any chance that Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson could continue with their banter-filled analysis. That said, there is a glimmer of hope with the latest news trickling in.

Amazon Prime’s global head of sports, Jay Marine spoke with Sports Business Journal about winning the bid and how they want to approach their broadcast. He mentioned this about the crew:

Obviously, there’ll be a lot of interest, and we’ll just have to see how that plays out.’
Jay Marine on Sports Business Journal

This corroborates the idea that the streaming giant is actively looking at bringing the crew of Inside the NBA over to their side. They, as are so many other networks, are fans of how the crew conducts themselves. How they entertain fans late into the night with their short and to-the-point analysis while adding a touch of banter in between, is gold.

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That banter is borne out of chemistry that has been built over the years and is not easy to replicate. More importantly, it requires the combination of a former player who is not afraid to add sarcasm such as Barkley. One who gives thoughtful analysis while being the unofficial instigator like Smith. Another who will get into the argument based on how he has played the game, such as O’Neal.

To sew it all together, a moderator and host like Johnson who knows how to keep the ball rolling and when to stop. Such a combination is hard to come by or even create instantly. Which is why Amazon Prime wants to hire them. However, it may be extremely difficult.

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The future of Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and the crew

All of them are still tied to contracts with Warner Bros Discovery, the parent company of TNT. They can get out of those contracts with some potential buyouts. However, it has long been reported that Ernie Johnson, who is closer to 70, will retire, rather than join another network. He is loyal to TNT.

Charles Barkley on the other hand is likely to go solo. He has made it clear recently that he will retire from television after next season. Which means, he is likely to forge ahead with his own production house. Essentially, making it possibly a solo run in the digital space. Shaquille O’Neal might prefer to remain a freelancer.

What Kenny Smith does remains to be seen. There is also the Tuesday crew of Inside the NBA. What Adam Lefkoe, Candace Parker, Jamal Crawford, and Vince Carter do is unknown. So will the many staff the show and TNT have employed so far. Maybe all these details will unravel as the days go by.

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