If TNT loses the NBA beginning with the 25-26 season, Charles Barkley will receive interest from all three media rights partners in ESPN, Amazon and NBC, according to Andrew Marchand.
Barkley is under contract beyond 2025, but it is unclear if he has an out dependent on the NBA. Barkley has been outspoken criticizing Warner Bros. Discovery for being in a situation where they are on the verge of not extending its media rights deal with the NBA.
There have not yet been any real discussions on how the “Inside The NBA” crew of Barkley, Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith could stay together on another network.
“An educated guess is that any number will be closer to $20 million annually than $10 million,” writes Richard Deitsch. “If I had to handicap a non-WBD player, I would cautiously put my money on NBC. Very cautiously.”
