TNT’s Final Shot to Save Shaq and Charles Barkley’s Inside the NBA Sounds Desperate as They Prepare Needy Bid to Ensure 100 Employees’ Survival

Get ready for another update on NBA media rights negotiations. To spectators’ surprise, Warner Bros. Discovery is in negotiations to secure a fourth media rights package. Until now, TNT was expected to be elbowed out of the NBA streaming game due to three rights partners: Amazon Prime Video, incumbent ESPN, and NBC Sports. But now, TNT is at the table for a fourth package in order to safeguard its employees.

To share this news among the spectators, Michael McCarthy took to his official X account and declared, “LAST STAND: TNT is trying to save its 40-year NBA relationship by securing a 4th media rights package outside of ESPN, NBC, and Prime. If TNT pulls it off, it would save Charles Barkley’s ‘Inside the NBA’ studio show.”

As the interview aired, the hope of millions came alive. If TNT gets this smaller and less expensive package, it would cover regular seasons and some of the playoffs. But why would the NBA agree to this just to save a 40-year relationship? More or less, the NBA would benefit from this package by slicing off locally televised games to turn them into national games. However, the NBA isn’t the only one benefitting from this fourth package!

Charles Barkley voices the uncertainty

This package for TNT would also ensure the survival of the Emmy-winning host from the studio show ‘Inside the NBA’. However, Barkley, 61, wants to work less due to a lack of direction from TNT bosses. In an exclusive interview with Mad Dog Sports Radio, Barkley said, “I’m like, ‘Yo, man, you guys see us every week, how ’bout picking up the phone, saying, ‘Hey, we’re still negotiating’ or ‘you know what, we’ve lost it.’”

But above all, the 61-year-old has been with the NBA since his retirement and has been a part of 100 families. “I just feel so bad for the people I work with,..These people have families, and I just really feel bad for them right now. These people I work with, they screwed this thing up, clearly, and we don’t have zero idea what’s gonna happen,” he told in the Dan Patrick Show. Considering what this fourth package would mean to these employees, it’s most likely Charles Barkley would pitch for it.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is already struggling with a debt of $40 billion. Purchasing this new package would also enable the CEO to back up his words about not overpaying for the NBA. Additionally, it will help stave off rebellion from operators who will most likely not be willing to pay for TNT without NBA games. Still, the question remains: will TNT have this fourth and final shot?

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