In recent months, Charles Barkley has never been shy about calling out his network heads during the media rights deal fiasco. Similarly, Chuck has even called out his rival executive at ESPN as “clowns,” “stupid” and whatnot. But the Walt Disney-owned company got one over Barkley, not before they faced a heavy loss. Adrian Wojnarowski’s sudden retirement announcement left a bittersweet feeling.

In Sports Illustrated’s list of the 50 most influential figures and forces in sports, there is no place for Charles Barkley. But ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith finds his place in the influencers category. Not just him, Elle Duncan, Andraya Carter, and Chiney Ogwumike also find a place thanks to their impeccable coverage of women’s basketball coverage. Last year’s list did have the NBA on TNT crew in the influencers list, but it changed in a year.

Surely, a team effort at ESPN for thumping TNT and the Inside the NBA show. But the team would certainly miss Adrian Wojnarowski, as he steps aside from his NBA insider role, which he called “a dream job” to pursue another project that is close to his heart. The 55-year-old has accepted the general manager role of the men’s basketball program at St. Bonaventure.

Wojnarowski is a St. Bonaventure alumnus and has a close relationship, which can be demonstrated by his several fundraisers for the school’s collective in recent years. Wojnarowski said to ESPN, “It is a thrill of a lifetime to be able to return to a university and community that I love in a role of service to our student-athletes, coaches and institution.”

There will definitely be a void at ESPN since Wojnarowski has been part of their team since 2017. But as soon as his retirement announcement came to light, there were reports that Shams Charania’s contract expires this year. Plus, another report hinted at ESPN going all-out for the current senior insider for The Athletic. High on their wishlist is another signing of Charles Barkley, despite his negative comments over the period of time.

Charles Barkley not mincing words with his attack on ESPN

Sir Charles on the Bill Simmons podcast said, “I don’t know if you watched our show, but I went off on the news media, all those clowns at the ESPN.” Chuck was upset because the coverage heavily relied on the Lakers first when the rival network called them a contender for the championship.

During his appearance on Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich, Charles Barkley grew frustrated with ESPN’s coverage. “I was so pissed yesterday, I had to turn my TV off…This is how stupid they are.” This time he was upset because instead of the NBA and NHL finals, the focus was once again on the Lakers. As per the 61-year-old, the focus was unnecessarily high on the Dan Hurley saga.

Despite his strong resentment, ESPN’s new President of Content wants Charles Barkley. Burke Magnus called it a “perfect world” if they were able to sign Chuck. Not just that, “I would be lying if we said we weren’t interested in Charles”. With Barkley saying he has an immunity clause to get out of his contract, it wouldn’t be wrong to speculate there is a possibility of the move.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.