Turner’s Charles Barkley has not budged from his stated goal to leave TNT at the end of his current deal.
When asked about his future by this writer during a Tuesday conference call, Barkley said that he plans to finish out the two years remaining on his deal and then step away. He will be 61 at the end of his contract and has previously spoken about his desire to leave TV at age 60 (in Tuesday’s call, he said he had not realized that his new contract would take him up to 61).
Barkley, who has been with TNT since 2000, has not-infrequently suggested that his time in TV may be numbered. As far back as his first year with TNT, he flirted with an NBA comeback with Michael Jordan’s Washington Wizards. For years, he discussed the possibility of going into politics. Over the past decade, he has expressed multiple times a desire to leave at the end of his contract, saying in 2012 and 2014 that he was leaning toward leaving TNT at the expiration of his deal in 2016.
Whether this time is different remains to be seen.
In related news, Turner announced Tuesday that Barkley and his “Inside the NBA” colleagues Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Shaquille O’Neal and Draymond Green will work an alternate presentation of Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game on TBS. Details are vague about the telecast — titled “Inside the All-Star Game” — with Turner’s Tuesday press release merely saying that the quintet will “engage and entertain fans throughout the evening.”
TBS previously aired a “Players Only” alternate presentation of the All-Star Game in 2019.
The alternate presentation is a change of plans from what was reported by the New York Post weeks ago — that Barkley would work the main All-Star Game broadcast alongside Kevin Harlan and Reggie Miller. Instead, Dwyane Wade will join Harlan and Miller. For his part, Barkley said the TNT team was told of the alternate presentation plan within the past couple of weeks.
[News from Turner Sports]
