One of the things that the NBA world has been dreading for a long time may take place shortly. If TNT is not successful in retaining their media rights, then the charismatic and hilarious crew of Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson Jr. will end up going their separate ways after 13 years of companionship. Luckily for Barkley, he may have other prospects lined up. One of the places where he can head towards is the $24 billion-worth network ESPN, which had earlier shown an interest in partnering up. However, the Philadelphia 76ers legend hasn’t been a big fan of the network in the past.

Back in 2016, ‘Inside the NBA’ was covering the aftermath of a matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder. When asked how would Charles Barkley cover the news if he worked for ESPN, the former player went into a rant that caused his co-hosts to develop fits of laughter. “Not gonna work me like a dog and not pay me,” said Barkley and others attempted to control their laughter, adding, “They’ll have me on ESPN One, Two, Three, ESPN News, ESPNU, ESPN Radio! They’re gonna have me on ESPN Deportes saying ‘Muy Bien, Gracias!’”

This fact was recently highlighted by two renowned podcasters. A few hours ago, Chris Broussard and Rob Parker starred in another segment of ‘Fox Sports Radio’. They kicked things off by discussing the current dilemma surrounding the ‘Inside the NBA’ crew and what steps can be taken ahead of it. In regards to ESPN, Broussard highlighted that many people from the NBA world who don’t head there state that it is because “ESPN wants you to work too hard”. This reminded the duo of a similar remark once made by Charles Barkley himself.

“He (Barkley) said ‘If I went and signed there, I’d be on Deportes’,” said Rob Parker. Broussard believed that once ESPN gets a hold of the former player, they will have him appear on ‘First Take’, ‘Get Up’, the pre-game show, and several other segments, while TNT only had him appear on one. For the podcasters, Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal are people who have quite a high demand and therefore don’t have to do so many shows for one network. Therefore, one of the few viable options that may remain for the ‘Inside the NBA’ crew would be to head off to NBC.

Charles Barkley wants to take over ‘Inside the NBA’ through his own production company

With rumors circulating that the NBA is finalizing a deal to grant its television rights to Disney/ESPN, NBC, and Amazon, not much will be left for TNT by the end of it. As a result, the end of ‘Inside the NBA’ seems imminent. If there is anyone who is most upset with these developments, then it is Charles Barkley. During a recent interview on ‘The Dan Patrick Show’, the 11x NBA All-Star stated that morale is down and that the people he works with “screwed this thing up, clearly”.

He was especially upset that TNT chose to invest in college football and not the NBA. However, if TNT loses its media rights, Barkley reportedly becomes a free agent. Once this happens, he would be willing to take a bold step. “I’ve talked to the guys about everybody signing with my production company, because I have my own production company, and I would love to do that if we lose it,” said Barkley.

“Actually, somebody suggested that to me, to be honest with you, on the internet. I’m like, that’s a great idea. But like I said, we’re just sitting back, waiting on these people to figure out what they’re going to do,” he further noted.

Even if ‘Inside the NBA’ is dissolved, Warner Bros Discovery, the parent company of TNT, will continue to hold on to its rights. However, an independent effort by the 61-year-old millionaire can save the dream of thousands of fans. Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow in what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.