“We wanted to hand deliver this to Ernie,” Shaquille O’Neal said to Ernie Johnson. Adam Lefkoe, Grant Hill, Vince Carter, and Jamal Crawford took over the NBA on TNT when the Inside guys had to take a special trip for their brother, Johnson. He was inducted into the 2023 Broadcasting Hall of Fame. It was a special moment for the 68-year-old, and his Inside the NBA colleagues couldn’t miss it. As the Inside the NBA crew headed toward a new era, Johnson turned emotional.

The beloved broadcaster recently joined The Draymond Green Show for a conversation. Speaking about the NBA on TNT, Johnson detailed how emotional it was to attend TNT’s last NBA All-Star. He has been part of TNT for nearly four decades. Time flies fast! He reminisced about the NBA All-Star in Atlanta in 2003, which was Michael Jordan’s last NBA All-Star appearance, and where Kevin Garnett won MVP honors.

“Man it’s a blink all of a sudden we’re sitting there in San Francisco and saying this the last one. It’s the last one of these All Star games that we’re going to do so that part’s been difficult but I’m glad that we’re able to salvage the show even though it’s not going to be on TNT,” Johnson said.

While it was an emotional moment for the entire Inside the NBA crew, Johnson also expressed hope. After Turner failed to secure the NBA broadcasting rights, there was massive uncertainty about the future of Inside the NBA. Chuck almost went to LinkedIn to look for jobs despite having offers from Amazon and more. Finally, TNT licensed the show to ESPN. While this was the last NBA All-Star for the Inside guys on TNT, the team isn’t breaking up. 

Next year, when the NBA kicks off its $76 billion deal, the Inside guys will have a new chance for the first time to cover the NBA Finals as ESPN holds the rights. “When you tune into some of these nights on ABC or ESPN the pregame show is going to be us. We’re going to still be doing it in Atlanta, we’re just not going to be saying the NBA on TNT…To stay together with those guys (and) to stay together with our production crew, that’s really important yeah it’s the business of basketball,” Johnson said. Our favorite squad will likely stay together, just on a different network. But is it confirmed? 

Did Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley give the green light?

From the revelations that Johnson made earlier, it seems that the veteran will remain with his crew even with the show being licensed out to ESPN next season. The bond between the cast is stronger than ever. Now, what about Kenny Smith? He also had a deal with TNT, and as per sources, The Jet, too, will seemingly not break the team. However, there is yet to be confirmed news.

The Philadelphia 76ers legend was one of the members who was concerned about the deal. As one of the most coveted analysts, Charles Barkley had enticing offers from Amazon, NBC, and more. He met with other companies as well, but his loyalty to Turner couldn’t be swayed. He refused a deal worth nearly $100 million to stay with TNT. The only issue with him is that he doesn’t like to work too much.

At 61, he prefers an easy schedule. The one remaining is O’Neal. His deal with TNT is about to end, and there was tension that he might not extend his contract. But as per Front Office Sports, the Los Angeles Lakers legend as signed a new deal with Turner, which will pay him $15 million per year. It seems that hope is still there. All we have to do now is wait for the official news that the Inside Guys squad will remain intact.