
USA Today via Reuters
Apr 6, 2019; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Charles Barkley reacts in the second half in the semifinals of the 2019 men’s Final Four between the Virginia Cavaliers and Auburn Tigers at US Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

USA Today via Reuters
Apr 6, 2019; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Charles Barkley reacts in the second half in the semifinals of the 2019 men’s Final Four between the Virginia Cavaliers and Auburn Tigers at US Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports
Inside the NBA on TNT always felt like home. It became a habit for hoopers for over three decades, and no one knew there would ever be a goodbye, but it had. Inside the NBA on TNT was gone; fans everywhere feared the end, but a stunning media shakeup saved the most beloved show in sports. ESPN swooped in, licensing the legendary show and ensuring Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson would remain together. For basketball fans, despite being hurt, it felt like a miracle to see the core together. But for Barkley? Relief has quickly turned into something else: worry.
That worry? It recently shot through the roof thanks to a disastrous attempt from TNT to cook up a new show concept. In a brutally honest interview on the Pardon My Take podcast, Barkley spilled the beans when asked, “Was it a full trade or are you guys still doing work for TNT?” Revealing the network actually had them film a pilot for a new show that was nothing short of a train wreck. ” They’re trying to do something. We don’t know what it is yet. We taped a pilot, and it was a s— pilot,” Barkley said bluntly. “So, we did like four segments. One segment was Kenny doing fashion—One segment was like Shaq doing Shaq, he funniest section you do. One we did axe throwing, and then we did finger painting.”
The experience was so mind-bogglingly bad that the entire crew knew, right then and there, they had a dud on their hands. “I don’t know how stupid it’s going to be until I see it. Yeah. And when we walked out the studio that night, we’re like, ‘That’s the stupidest s— we’ve ever done,'” he recalled. For Barkley, this hit a raw nerve—“And that’s my major concern with TNT. I think we can handle the ESPN portion, but I don’t want them doing something stupid with our show that people like, man, they really ruined that show, right?” he said with a serious face, expressing concern. To their credit, he admitted, TNT eventually agreed the pilot was awful and mercifully shelved it.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
“They said the pilot was shitty. It’s important to know. ..and that’s all you want…Don’t just do something stupid just to do it.” Barkley said about the Pilot show, but even with that concept crashing and burning, his anxiety hasn’t vanished—it’s merely shifted. Now, his gaze is fixed squarely on his new partners at ESPN. So what’s his biggest fear with the new deal? That Inside the NBA will be forced to fight for precious airtime with ESPN’s own massive flagship program, SportsCenter. Moreover, for decades, Inside the NBA has thrived on creative freedom. Loose, unscripted, chaotic—and wildly entertaining. But Barkley worries ESPN’s rigid broadcast structure could suffocate that.
AD
“Normally the number one time on our show is after the game. We get like 45 minutes to shoot the s—,” Barkley explained. “But me and Ernie have talked about it. Like, are we going to get to do that? Or are they going to say, ‘We gotta go to SportsCenter?'” It’s a totally legitimate question. For years, that unscripted, often chaotic postgame segment has been the very heart and soul of the show. The worst part is that, right now, not Barkley, not Ernie, nor Shaq has any clue what their show will even look like because “ESPN got their own thing.”

USA Today via Reuters
Feb 25, 2012; Orlando, FL, USA; Shaquille O’Neal (left), Ernie Johnson (lc), Chris Weber (rc), and Charles Barkley (right) on the TNT set at the 2012 NBA All-Star Shooting Stars competition at the Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
And Barkley’s not alone in these worries. His co-host, Kenny Smith, has publicly aired his own questions about what the new time constraints will be. “Are we a half hour now? Are we forty-five minutes? Fifteen minutes?” Smith asked. Even sharp media commentators like Bomani Jones and Bill Simmons have weighed in, pointing out that ESPN “historically has not done postgame shows,” a fact that leaves many wondering how these two iconic brands will truly manage to coexist.
In fact, the sheer uncertainty surrounding the show’s future only amplified Barkley’s frustration with how TNT handled the entire transition.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
What’s your perspective on:
Will ESPN's structure stifle the magic of 'Inside the NBA' or let Barkley and crew shine?
Have an interesting take?
How Charles Barkley found out he was “traded” to ESPN
According to Charles Barkley, the way their bosses at TNT handled the entire transition to ESPN situation was nothing short of “awful.” He revealed that he and his colleagues were kept completely in the dark. “They did an awful job keeping us abreast,” Barkley said on the same episode of Pardon My Take. “We were playing golf in the middle of the playoffs, and we were reading the internet to find out if we were going to get fired or not. And I was like TNT, our bosses, they suck, plain and simple—there’s a way you treat people.”
The disrespect, he said, was absolutely staggering. He found out that the show had been licensed to ESPN not from his own bosses, but from a sudden flurry of congratulatory text messages from his new colleagues. “I get a text from Scott Van Pelt, Brian Windhorst, Elle Duncan and Bob Myers welcoming me to the family. I’m like, ‘What family?'” Barkley recalled. “Then, about an hour and a half later, I get a call from TNT that the story broke. I said, ‘Well, you probably could have given us a head’s up. You’ve traded us to ESPN.'” But what hurt Barkley most? How Ernie Johnson was treated, and Chuck did explain.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad

USA Today via Reuters
Feb 20, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; TBS announcer Ernie Johnson before the game between Team LeBron and Team Durant during the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
“Ernie shouldn’t be finding out from ESPN people or Twitter,” Barkley said. After 35 years at TNT, Johnson is more than just a host—he’s the emotional core of the show. Barkley believes he deserved better. So, where does that leave Inside the NBA? In limbo. The crew remains intact, but the setting is changing. And for Charles Barkley, the question isn’t just whether fans will keep watching. It’s whether ESPN will let them keep being Inside the NBA. “This show is special because it’s us,” Barkley once famously said. “Let us be us. Or don’t do it at all.” The magic was never just in the format—it was in the freedom. Whether that survives the move will determine if Inside the NBA remains a show fans love—or just one they used to.
Top Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
"Will ESPN's structure stifle the magic of 'Inside the NBA' or let Barkley and crew shine?"