Charles Barkley Criticizes TNT Leaders, Offers to Take Over Inside the NBA

Potential Loss of NBA Broadcast Rights

TNT has been showing basketball for over 20 years, but now it might stop. The league is close to a deal with Disney/ESPN, Amazon, and the NBA itself. Even though Warner Bros. Discovery has enough money to compete with NBC’s offer, they probably won’t.

Chuck’s Frustration on The Dan Patrick Show

On The Dan Patrick Show, Charles Barkley shared his frustration. He said morale is really low and he feels bad for his coworkers who have families to support.

He mentioned how confusing things are right now and how disappointing it was when the company bought college football instead of focusing on keeping the NBA.

Future Plans if TNT Loses Rights

Inside the NBA is super popular with Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Barkley himself. If TNT loses its rights, Barkley’s contract lets him leave too. He’s thinking about starting his own production company to keep working with his friends.

Someone online suggested he should sign everyone under his production company and sell it as a package deal. Barkley thought this was a great idea but said they’re still waiting for decisions from higher-ups.

Warner Bros CEO’s Comments

Barkley thinks one reason for this mess is because Warner Bros CEO David Zaslav upset Adam Silver by saying “We don’t need the NBA” two years ago. This comment didn’t sit well with Silver and might be why negotiations aren’t going well.

“I am angry,” Barkley admitted while talking about how many people could lose their jobs because of this situation.

Charles Barkley calls out ‘clown’ boss David Zaslav for potentially losing the NBA rights

“[He] came out and said, ‘We don’t need the NBA’ … that probably pissed Adam [Silver] off … but the people who work there … we need it”

(via @dpshow)

— Culture Crave (@CultureCrave)

I think it’s sad when good shows end because of business decisions.

Barkley talked about how long he’s worked at TNT with Ernie (32 years), Kenny (27 years), and himself (24 years). He doesn’t want to leave these people who feel like family to him