The state of the NBA’s television rights has been a hot topic partly due to the popularity of the longtime running studio “Inside the NBA,” which features Ernie Johnson and former NBA greats Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith.
As contracts await final approval from the NBA’s board of governors, NBCUniversal and Amazon have reportedly been engaged in discussions with the league. Both media companies likely detailed what the NBA product would look like on their respective platforms.
Barkley, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and outspoken television analyst, took issue with the potential structure of the NBA’s upcoming media rights deal. He was not particularly fond of the idea that fans could be forced to stream regular season games and other marquee matchups in the near future.
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Charles Barkley talks with media prior to Game Four of the 2024 NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics at American Airlines Center on June 14, 2024 in Dallas, Texas. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Barkley visited the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Lake Tahoe, California earlier this week. The resort is the site of this year’s American Century Celebrity golf tournament.
While he was on the golf course, the 61-year-old broadcaster took a few moments to chat about the company he works for, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), potentially being left on the outside looking in when the dust settles. WBD is TNT’s parent company.
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Barkley has been a cornerstone of TNT’s NBA coverage for nearly a quarter of a century, but he recently announced that the upcoming 2024-25 season would be his final one working as an analyst.
A basketball is placed on the court next to an NBA logo during a break in the first half of a game in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Barkley has been a vocal critic of the shift in sports to lean into streaming due to the potential financial benefits. But Barkley argued that the move to streaming would also leave NBA fans at a disadvantage.
“Well, I think that you got greedy players and greedy owners,” Barkley told CNBC.
“They don’t really care about anything but how to make the most money possible. We should never put money above the regular fan. Everybody can’t afford streaming. There’s nothing wrong with streaming, but when you start just going to the highest bidder and you’re not on regular television, I think you do a disservice to the fan.”
TNT basketball analyst Charles Barkley on air before the NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the North Carolina State Wolfpack at State Farm Stadium on April 6, 2024, in Glendale, Arizona. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
Despite being one of the league’s broadcast partners for the past few decades, TNT might be on the verge of losing its broadcasting rights deal to competitors. A potential new media deal could include Disney/ESPN, NBC and Amazon, which would possibly leave WBD on the outside looking in.
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Earlier this week, The Associated Press reported that the NBA had agreed to terms on its new media deals. The 11-year agreements are worth an estimated $76 billion, the AP noted, citing sources.
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