Former NBA star Charles Barkley has found success with his NBA media show ‘Inside the NBA,’ which has earned millions of fans and viewers since it first aired in 1989. With the show now heading to ESPN, however, things are already starting to change, and Barkley says the transition is off to a rough start.
“This has been the worst,” said Barkley on The Bill Simmons Podcast. “TNT just sucks, to be honest with you. They made this deal, and they haven’t told us where we’re gonna work. They haven’t told us how it’s going to work. We’ve been talking behind the scenes about whether we’re going to get any time after the game, or are they gonna say, ‘Hey, you guys got to go to SportsCenter?’ I’ve asked that question because it’s the best part of our show.”
What makes ‘Inside the NBA’ so popular isn’t the analysis or star power. Where the show’s true power comes from is through the comedic moments, personal interactions, and creative segments that happen at the end of games. ESPN, however, may cut that part of the show to keep with their tradition of going straight to SportsCenter.
“After the game, we have conversations and have fun,” added Barkley. “Are they going to say ‘You guys got three minutes, five minutes, 15, 20, 30, 45,’ or are we going to go straight to SportsCenter? They haven’t given us an answer whatsoever, and TNT sold the show, and they haven’t been [communicating]. They got paid.”
As a part of the TNT network (Warner Bros. Discovery), Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson, and Kenny Smith had the freedom to be themselves and have genuine, original conversations. They had enough time to cover the game while also providing fans with an escape through segments like “Shaqtin’ a Fool,” “EJ’s Neat-O Stat of the Night,” and “Who He Play For?” None of that covers the random and unprompted comedic moments that happen naturally since the four legends are close friends.
With TNT’s broadcast rights ending, many fans feared that the 2024-25 season would be the end of the show for good, and Barkley himself was ready to call an end to his media career. Fortunately, Warner Bros. licensed the program to ESPN, keeping it alive for years to come.
While the news was met with high praise and relief, nobody knows what it means for the show’s quality. ESPN does things differently from TNT, and they have a different format and ruleset for how they cover games.
If Barkley and the crew aren’t given any screen time after the game, it means much of their best and favored content could get the axe, leaving room for only basic and typical NBA coverage. What’s worse is that neither ESPN nor TNT has communicated with the guys, meaning they’re being left in the dark on how it will work or how they can adjust their routine.
Ultimately, only time will tell if ‘Inside the NBA’ will be the same show we all know and love, but Barkley is already speaking out on the process. If things keep going like this, we can’t expect him or his co-hosts to stick around for much longer.
