ALL signs point to the 2024-25 season being the final edition of Inside the NBA.
According to Sports Business Journal, the NBA is finalizing media rights deals with Disney, NBC and Amazon this week.
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Notably, Warner Bros. Discovery is being left out of these final negotiations, signaling a likely end to its partnership with the league.
Sports Business Journal reported huge numbers coming from the networks for NBA media rights.
ESPN is expected to pay about $2.8 billion for its share of NBA coverage.
NBC’s package is coming in at about $2.6 billion, up from the initial $2.5 billion.
Amazon’s deal ranges from $1.8 to $2 billion and would have a collection of Tournament of the Season, Play-In Tournament, first-round playoff games, WNBA and international rights.
Once details of the deals are finalized, sources say the NBA will take NBC’s final offer to Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. is expected to and TNT Sports are unable to match the deal, as they currently only pay $1.2 billion for the current deal.
Additionally, Warner Bros. It has $40 billion in debt and doesn’t have the same over-the-air infrastructure as NBC and parent company Comcast.
With TNT losing its NBA coverage, this also means the end of fan-favorite show Inside the NBA.
The 2024-25 season will officially be the last for the roster of Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal.
NBA fans were devastated by the news and shared their sadness on social media.
“They will be missed,” said one fan.
“End of an era,” said another fan.
“TNT needs to let them go to NBC,” said a third fan.
“Sad day for the NBA,” said a fourth fan.
Inside the future of the NBA?
The operation of the NBA on TNT Sports is in doubt due to the NBA’s broadcast agreements.
The Emmy-winning sports show is a fan favorite thanks to the likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley.
But TNT’s broadcast deal with the NBA ends after next season and NBC is preparing a bid to take over those rights.
If TNT loses its NBA package, it will raise questions about the popular Inside the NBA.
One solution could be to recreate the show on another network, which would snatch the rights from the NBA.
“It’s been a good run man,” said a fifth fan.
It’s unclear what the future holds for the Inside the NBA cast, but Charles Barkley has made it clear that he has an opt-out in his contract for this exact scenario.
“I covered my ass to be honest with you,” Barkley said.
“I just signed a 10-year contract two years ago, but one of the things I did was opt out in a couple of years because I wanted to protect myself when it came to this situation.”
Barkley didn’t reveal whether his co-hosts have the same opt-out, but they all signed their new deals at the same time in 2022.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
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