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Beloved NBA Show’s Future Beyond 2024 Up in the Air as Broadcasting Rights Create Massive Problem

Originally posted on Hardwood Heroics
By Christian Alamodin | Last updated 5/1/24

It’s hard to imagine watching NBA basketball without Inside the NBA. The iconic show—featuring former NBA players Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and respected sports media personality Ernie Johnson—has become a fixture in sports media that covers the latest happenings in the world’s best pro basketball league.

It wouldn’t be weird to think that four gentlemen fronting the show would be around for a long time. However, a contract dispute between the league and the show’s parent company could see it end up in the middle of media purgatory.

Fortunately, there seems to be a solution for fans who don’t want to see the show end. However, that would entirely depend on whether there are parties actually interested in continuing the great work the show has done so far.

Inside the NBA can end if the league decides to end its partnership with TNT

The league has a broadcasting contract with TNT, the company that kickstarted the popular basketball program, that is set to end in the 2024-25 season. While the station has done a brilliant job in presenting the league, it may lose its broadcasting rights as NBCUniversal is serious about its NBA pursuit.

While this may usually spell trouble for many of the network’s pro basketball-related content, this doesn’t necessarily spell the end of the long-running show.

Per The Spun’s Andrew Gould:

On The Town podcast, Puck entertainment reporter Matthew Belloni speculated that another platform gaining NBA rights would pick up Inside The NBA.

“There’s a real chance here that Warner (Bros.) Discovery does not get NBA rights,” Belloni said, via Awful Announcing. “And if it does get NBA rights, the amount of games is going to be very small, likely. My prediction is that Inside the NBA, the Turner studio show that everybody loves, will not exclusively air on TNT after the 2024-25 season.

“It’s either going to be on Amazon, or it’s going to be on TNT and another one of those outlets, Amazon or NBC.”

The show is one of the most popular basketball studio shows in the country due to how well the four hosts work with each other. Not only do they visibly enjoy each other’s company, the opinions they give about certain teams and stars are seriously being considered all over the globe.

The show has created such a cultural impact that it would be weird not to see the four men talking basketball on the air. If the league does decide to leave TNT, fans can rest easy knowing that their favorite show will not go off the air.

This article first appeared on Hardwood Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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