‘Inside the NBA’ stars Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal given glimmer of hope over TV deal as NBA chief Adam Silver says talks with TNT are still alive
There may still be life in ‘Inside the NBA,’ but NBA Commissioner Adam Silver revealed that talks with TNT are still ongoing.
Earlier this week, it emerged that the NBA formalized written contracts with ESPN, NBC and Amazon on new TV deals worth a combined $7.4 billion per year.
According to Sports business magazinenegotiations with all three companies entered the “final stages” of what was a huge blow to TNT and their long-running show “Inside the NBA.”
The news upset fans of Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal, both of whom are analysts on TNT’s hit show that, if these deals go through, will be its final run next season.
But it appears the NBA is still open to negotiations with TNT.
Adam Silver (pictured with wife Maggie Grise) has revealed that talks with TNT are still ongoing
ESPN, NBC and Amazon appeared to have beaten TNT and its “Inside the NBA” program to rights
Outside the White House State Dinner Thursday in Washington DC, Commissioner Silver said: “We’re all still in discussions. Who knows how it’s going to end?’
It was reported that ESPN will pay $2.8 billion per year for the league’s highest-rated games, including the NBA finals, a conference finals, weekly primetime clashes and the WNBA.
NBC, meanwhile, plans to allocate $2.6 billion annually for the “B” package, which would likely include a show called “Basketball Night in America” that airs on Sunday nights after the NFL season.
According to SBJ, NBC would also secure a conference semifinal, a conference final and two primetime slots per week.
Amazon’s deal – which would reportedly be worth up to $2 billion – would involve the In-Season Tournaments, first-round playoff games and the WNBA.
It was reported that ESPN, NBC and Amazon have new deals worth a combined $7.4 billion per year
Just last week, NBA legend O’Neal said he was “confident” that “Inside the NBA” would remain with TNT next season.
The beloved studio show stars O’Neal, Barkley, Kenny Smith and host Ernie Johnson.
“I don’t know (about the future of the show), but hopefully (Warner Bros. Discovery CEO) David Zaslav will take care of things, I’m sure he will,” he said.
“I think we’re in a great place right now.”
Barkley was a little less sure, adding, “It would be sad (if the show ended). We don’t know… I hope so (continued). Not just for me and Kenny and Ernie and Shaq, but for the real people who work there, it sucks to be stressed right now.”