Charles Barkley announced on Friday that the upcoming season will be his final one on TV, regardless of the NBA’s media deals. The former Hall of Fame player has been a studio analyst for TNT for the past 24 years. While TNT may lose the rights to broadcast NBA games after the next season, Barkley has made it clear that he will not be moving to another network.
During NBA TV’s NBA Finals postgame show, Barkley stated, “There’s been a lot of noise around our network the last few months and I just want to say I’ve talked to all the other networks, but I ain’t going nowhere other than TNT.”
The NBA’s current deals with ABC-ESPN and Turner Sports are set to expire after the next season, prompting discussions with NBC, ESPN, Amazon, and other networks and platforms about future broadcasting rights. Commissioner Adam Silver expressed hope that new long-term deals will be finalized soon.
Although Barkley could garner interest from any network broadcasting NBA games, the 61-year-old has decided that his upcoming 25th year on television will be his last. He mentioned passing the baton to a TNT teammate like Vince Carter or Jamal Crawford.
“But I have made the decision myself no matter what happens, next year is going to be my last year on television,” he confirmed.
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