Charles Barkley’s Potential Successor Gives Bittersweet Response to TNT Host’s Retirement Declaration

He’s made it official. There will be no more San Antonio jokes, slapfight declarations, NBA players getting called stupid, and terribly wrong Chuck Guarantees after 2025. Charles Barkley showed up at NBA TV’s Game 4 panel and announced his retirement. In the typical Chuckster style, it was straightforward, sincere, and repetitive. Irrespective of whether the NBA stays at TNT or not, he will hang up the mic and step out of Studio J for good at the end of the 2024-25 season. He, however, stated he wanted TNT to retain the NBA so he could leave the spot open for a new face.

It’s not often you get name-dropped in a legend’s retirement announcement. But Chuck explicitly stated he’d love to pass the baton to Jamal Crawford, Vince Carter, or Steve Smith. Crawford responded to that moment, very effectively implying those are big shoes to fill. “Only ONE Chuck… Wow,” he wrote on Instagram with a teary-eyed emoji accompanying the video of Chuck’s statement. We’re definitely feeling Jamal.

At the end of Game 4, Barkley opened up about his future on TV in a heartfelt statement. “I have made the decision myself, no matter what happens, next year’s gonna be my last year on television,” he said after asserting he wanted to make the statement personally because of how much his TNT and NBA family matters to him. He went on to say, “I just want to say thank you to my NBA family, you guys have been great to me, my heart is full of joy and gratitude. But I’m going to pass the baton at the end of next year.”

He proceeded to name potential candidates to succeed him. “I’m going to pass the baton to Jamal Crawford or Vince Carter or you Steve [Smith], but next year, I’m just going to retire after 25 years.” Needless to say, the NBA community had some feelings.

Crawford’s reaction sums it up. Chuck is irreplaceable. But he’s ready to move on. TNT hasn’t given their statement and their side of the future plans, especially while it’s still negotiating an NBA media package, but it looks like whatever Turner decides, it would be without Barkley.

Charles Barkley and Jamal Crawford’s parallel careers

Charles Barkley made a swift transition from NBA playing to NBA analyzing in 2000. That was the year Jamal Crawford entered the NBA. He retired in 2020 and around 2022 started popping up on TNT as a guest analyst several times. That was the year Barkley had signed a 10-year $100 million contract extension with TNT too.

But he had made it clear he wasn’t going to see the end of the contract. Meanwhile, Crawford’s sporadic appearances turned into a tenured spot at TNT Tuesdays alongside Shaquille O’Neal. Crawford even filled in for any of the analysts on Inside the NBA recently along with Vince Carter, especially while Chuck was in New York during March Madness.

Though he’s firm that he won’t be part of it after 2025, Barkley is hoping for NBA on TNT to continue. And he’d be looking forward to the next class of analysts in his place.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the Reese-Clark rivalry and more, watch this video.