According to NBA legend and Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, the [new venture between TNT and ESPN](https://www.si.com/nba/explaining-what-will-happen-to-inside-the-nba-with-tnt-losing-nba-rights) revolving around “Inside the NBA,” is already off to a rocky start. Barkley told Dan Patrick on his show Monday morning that they still aren’t clear what the show will look like moving from TNT to the four-letter network.
"We taped a pilot about a month ago, and it was the stupidest s\*\*t I've ever seen in my life," said Barkley, who balked at doing a show without the rights to NBA footage.
Barkley’s rant about this new [licensing deal between the powerhouse networks](https://fansided.com/posts/nba-rumors-espn-charles-barkley-inside-the-nba-crew) is as interesting as it is hilarious. He mentions TNT filming a pilot with the crew — Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith — for a show that would still air on TNT, but without them being able to use any NBA footage.
Sir Charles called the idea of TNT producing a show with them having no NBA footage “stupid” multiple times during his latest Dan Patrick Show appearance. He already sounds just about fed up with what’s going on and also claims he doesn’t think they’ll be on ESPN as much as people may expect.
Charles Barkley and ESPN are not a match made in heaven
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It’s no secret that Barkley has bashed ESPN for years behind how much their talent has to work. Even at the top of the ladder, guys like Stephen A. Smith work non-stop. At this point of his broadcasting career, it’s hard to see Barkley doing the same for any company. He even said the Inside the NBA crew will likely only be working on ESPN about a third to half the time.
Take that however you like but it almost sounds like Barkley is looking for any reason from ESPN to make him walk out. It feels like it might take a miracle to get the show over to ESPN fully intact by the time the 2025-26 NBA regular season gets going in mid-October.
Boom or bust? Looks that way
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This is going to be a smooth transition with continued success once they get going on ESPN or a complete disaster for many reasons behind the scenes. It doesn’t feel like there will be room for much middle ground. Either way, we’ll all be watching once the next NBA season rolls around to see which way this dysfunctional family saga goes in their new home.