CHARLES Barkley has announced he will retire from TV after the next NBA season.
With TNT Sports set to lose NBA rights after the 2024-25 season, Barkley announced he will not move to a new network.
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The bombshell announcement came as a surprise during postgame coverage of Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
“I’ve been thinking, I want to say this because you guys are my family,” Barkley said.
“I really love TNT, all the people that work here. NBA Television, you guys have been great to me for 24 years. I just want to thank my entire NBA family, I love you.
“You know there’s been a lot of noise on our network over the last few months, and I just want to say I’ve talked to every other network, but I’m not going anywhere other than TNT.
“But I made the decision myself, no matter what happens, next year will be my last year on television.
“I just want to thank my NBA family, you guys have been great to me. My heart is full of joy and gratitude, but I will pass the baton at the end of next year.
“I hope the NBA stays with TNT, but personally, I wanted you to hear it from me because I’m not doing any more interviews.”
Barkley has hosted the NBA on TNT for 24 years and is a fan-favorite personality in the league.
He has been outspoken about TNT losing his media rights to NBC Sports, and previously shared that he has an opt-out in his contract for the set.
“I covered my ass to be honest with you,” Barkley said on ESPN Cleveland’s The Really Big Show.
“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.”
NBA viewers were heartbroken to learn of Barkley’s retirement and begged him to change his mind.
“What a tragedy,” said one fan.
“THIS IS WHY TNT SHOULD STAY,” said another fan.
“Barkley is great on TV. What a shame if he actually hangs up,” said a third fan.
Inside the future of the NBA?
The operation of the NBA on TNT Sports is in great 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 appears poised to take over those rights in a $2.6 billion deal.
If TNT loses its NBA package, it will raise serious 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.
“He was my first favorite player. He makes a lifetime of it,” said a fourth fan.
Inside the NBA with Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson is set to end after the 2024/25 NBA season after NBC Sports came forward with a massive NBA rights bid.
Johnson has already announced that he will remain with TNT if they lose the NBA rights.
Shaq and Johnson haven’t spoken about their future TV plans.
NBC Sports reportedly offered $2.5 billion per season for the broadcast package TNT currently occupies.
Warner Bros. Discovery, TNT’s parent company, pays less than half that amount under its current deal.
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