Signs continue to point to the TNT “Inside the NBA” crew remaining intact as the show moves to ESPN/ABC next season.
TNT NBA analyst Shaquille O’Neal has reached a long-term extension worth $15 million/year to remain with the company, Front Office Sports reported Friday. The report did not specify length, but CNBC previously reported that his deal would be for five years.
O’Neal will almost certainly continue in his current role on the TNT-produced “Inside the NBA” as it shifts to ESPN/ABC next season. He has no other on-air roles for TNT Sports — though he has produced other content for Warner Bros. Discovery — meaning that TNT could end up paying him eight figures per year to appear exclusively on other networks.
As for the other members of the “Inside” cast, Kenny Smith is reportedly expected to sign a new deal, and Charles Barkley said recently that he will remain with TNT after spurning other offers — though Barkley is a notoriously unreliable narrator when it comes to his future.
Nothing concrete has been reported about host Ernie Johnson. When it first became clear that TNT Sports was on the verge of losing its NBA package, it was assumed that would mean the end of Johnson’s three decades covering the league, as he is understood to have no desire to leave his longtime employer. That problem would seem to have been solved with TNT’s deal to license “Inside” to ESPN.
The quartet of O’Neal, Barkley, Smith and Johnson has worked together now for nearly 14 years, with the latter three approaching a quarter-century of working together.
