While the sports world debates the future of Inside the NBA, Charles Barkley is already lining up his next move. The Hall of Famer is expanding beyond the broadcast desk with a new media venture, teaming up with actor Justin Hartley to launch a sports comedy podcast that flips the typical sports-show formula on its head.

Barkley’s Round Mound Media and Hartley’s ChangeUp Productions are partnering on “So U Think U Can Sports?”, which will debut this fall on Lemonada Media, according to Deadline.

The show will be hosted by comedian Eliot Glazer, best known for his role on Broad City and for serving as co-executive producer of the recent revival of iCarly. Glazer’s lack of sports knowledge is the podcast’s central gimmick, a deliberate contrast to Barkley’s decades as one of the most recognizable voices in sports media.

Meanwhile, the concept unfolds as a full-season project. Glazer asks every awkward question fans secretly wonder about but feel too embarrassed to ask. Glazer will also speak with current players, coaches, and team owners beyond Charles Barkley. Therefore, the podcast becomes a full-season project where Glazer asks the awkward questions fans secretly wonder about.

In a statement, Lemonada CEO Stephanie Wittels Wachs revealed that the early script concepts had her laughing out loud. Meanwhile, Perman said Glazer’s lack of sports knowledge is the key hook, adding that the genre has rarely featured such a perspective. “Sports is everywhere, our culture is flooded with opinions, predictions, analyses, and Monday morning quarterbacking,” Perman said.

“What’s been missing until now is a show hosted by a personality with an almost shocking lack of sports knowledge,” he further added. “And we found that guy. Round Mound Media is honored to be partnering with ChangeUp Productions and Lemonada on what will be the most entertaining sports show since Charles Barkley joined Inside the NBA.”

Now, Charles Barkley is a key figure in this new project. He previously rejected offers from NBC and Amazon before Inside the NBA finally landed on ESPN. The agreement kept Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson together.

Meanwhile, TNT Sports retained full control of production and editorial decisions. However, Barkley spent nearly a year publicly saying nobody had explained how the arrangement would actually function. He even told Bill Simmons, “They haven’t told us how it’s going to work.”

Eventually, the first few ESPN episodes eased some of that doubt. Barkley later told Dan Patrick the network had largely “left us alone.” Still, scheduling headaches persist. At one point this season, Inside the NBA went almost a full month without an episode. Therefore, ESPN content president Burke Magnus has already promised to fix the cadence before next year begins.

Charles Barkley may have a retirement timeline

Since 2000, Charles Barkley has worked as a studio analyst on Inside the NBA, so TNT’s split from the NBA shocked him. Even after deciding to retire at 60, he stayed longer to protect his staff’s jobs after TNT lost NBA rights. Many employees lost their jobs, but his show’s crew kept theirs. He felt a deep bond with them and wanted to shield his family.

Now, he appeared on The Howard Eskin Show last month and shared, “I’ve been very strict with people about my work. Like I told them, I would stay till 60. I didn’t realize, and then TNT asked me to stay for two more years till we got the new TV deal.” He added, “Ernie is a guy I listen to… Like I say, I told them I would stay a couple more years, then I am gone, brother.”

Barkley’s latest move also reflects a broader shift across the sports media landscape, where high-profile athletes are increasingly turning their personal brands into independent media platforms.

Former NFL punter Pat McAfee landed an $85 million partnership with ESPN for The Pat McAfee Show, a deal that allows him to keep creative control while benefiting from the network’s distribution. Meanwhile, Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe has built a fast-growing media operation through his podcast Club Shay Shay, which surpassed one billion YouTube views in 2024 and helped fuel the rise of his Shay Shay Media brand.

The model has proven especially lucrative for current players as well. Brothers Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce turned their podcast New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce into one of the most popular sports shows on Spotify in 2025, later securing a deal reportedly worth more than $100 million with Amazon.

Against that backdrop, Barkley’s push into podcast production signals that even one of television’s most established sports personalities is looking to build a media platform beyond traditional broadcasting.

Charles Barkley is flipping his story and stepping off the court into uncharted territory. He’s swapping studio lights for podcast mics, pairing wit with chaos as Glazer asks every question fans secretly wonder about.