Overview

• After losing NBA game rights, TNT licensed Inside the NBA to ESPN, with TNT Sports retaining production and editorial control as ESPN sets when and how long it airs.
• Charles Barkley said on The Bill Simmons Podcast that “TNT just sucks” and that the crew has not been told where they will work or how much time they will get after games.
• ESPN’s advance listings currently allot only 30-minute postgame windows for the first two shows on October 22 and 23, a shorter slot than fans are used to and subject to change.
• Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson are expected to debut on ESPN at season tip-off while remaining TNT employees working out of Atlanta.
• Separately, Barkley said he declined an NBC offer over workload expectations and noted that both he and Ernie Johnson discussed a potential NBC studio show before the ESPN licensing deal took shape.