The most entertaining show on sports television is coming to an end.
Or at least in the current iteration that millions have come to know and love.
That’s because Inside the NBA on TNT, featuring Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal, is ending its 30-plus-year run on the TNT network and will be moving to ESPN next fall.
ESPN essentially struck a deal with TNT to license the show so that it would still continue on the air.
Except it will be broadcast on ESPN, rather than TNT, which lost its NBA rights in the league’s $76billion, 11-year broadcast deal announced in July 2024..
To all intents and purposes, TNT has treated this season as the show’s last, incorporating various segments and gimmicks throughout the NBA season to celebrate the show’s run.
The biggest news surrounding the show broke Thursday morning in a since-deleted post from the show’s official X account, revealing that a camera crew has been following the four stars to document the historic final season.
They have captured countless hours of behind-the-scenes footage for a documentary releasing next month.
In the snippet of video that was put out on social media, we see Johnson, Barkley, Smith, and O’Neal all having their entertaining and sometimes fiery moments that we normally see in front of the camera.
There was even a moment that Barkley joked about where he wants to go after his TNT run.
“Trade me to the Food Channel,” Barkley remarked.
Sorry Sir Charles, but you’re not going anywhere.
Johnson appeared on The Dan Patrick Show and talked about what the future of the show will look like going forward, after the playoffs conclude.
“Yeah, this is the plan,” Johnson said.
“We’re going to continue to do the show, but it’s just not going to air on TNT because the NBA on TNT is no more after these playoffs.
“But we’ll still do the show in Atlanta; still do with the same production crew; it will just air on ABC/ESPN on certain nights.”
Patrick asked Johnson if he would have stayed on the show if it was no longer produced out of Atlanta.
“No,” Johnson said. “That’s home.
“Look, I kinda see the finish line… I can’t wait for next year, can’t wait to stay with the guys.
“Then we’ll just see for the years after that what comes up and what I feel like doing.”
The good news for everyone is that the show isn’t going anywhere, while for so long it seemed that this season was going to be the end.
Sure, there will be tweaks, but for the most part, it will still be Johnson navigating the chaos between O’Neal and Barkley bickering, with Smith lending a hand or two.
After all, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
How to watch NBA in the UK
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With the NBA hurtling towards playoff season next month, there’s plenty riding on the remaining games.
Reigning champions the Boston Celtics are chasing back-to-back titles, and will be the first team to do this since 2018 if they’re successful.
Meanwhile, LeBron James and Luka Dončić’s Lakers are looking to win LA’s first championship since 2020.
To watch the rest of this NBA season, sign up for an NBA League pass using the links below. NBA League pass allows subscribers to watch games live and on demand.
- Buy NBA League Pass – £79.99 for the season, £16.99 a month
- Buy NBA League Pass Premium – £104.99 for the season, £29.99 a month
For more information read our article on how to watch the NBA.
