Charles Barkley has decided to stay with Turner Sports, declining offers from NBC and Amazon, while considering a future with TNT and ESPN -- depending on his workload.
Charles Barkley has made a decisive announcement about his future as an NBA analyst, confirming that he will not be joining NBC or Amazon.
Charles Barkley
| Position: | SF |
| Age: | 61 |
| Height: | 198 cm |
| Weight: | 113 kg |
| Birth place: | United States of America |
"I want to talk about my future because there's been a lot of stuff going on about my future, and I want to make everything perfectly clear," Chuck said on NBA on TNT. "I'm informing NBC that I will not accept their offer, I'm gonna cancel my future meetings with Amazon. I want to thank NBC, especially Mark Lazarus and Greg Hugh, for offering me a contract.
"I want to thank the guys at Amazon. Y'all been amazing, but my heart is always and will be at Turner Sports," Barkley continued. "The only thing I'm waiting on right now between TNT and ESPN, I met with ESPN those guys were amazing. I want to thank you guys for taking the time, and I just met with the TNT people.
"I'm hoping that this thing comes together and I can stay with TNT and ESPN, but as I've said, it's all going to be dictated on my workload. I'm not going to work more as I get older. I'm gonna sit down with ESPN and TNT more because I just need to know if I'm going to continue working, and that's my only decision going forward: how much I'm going to work.
"I just want to thank everybody who's been a part of this TNT theme. You guys are amazing, and I love you to death, but I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving here because 25 years is a long time."
Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns TNT, will lose its NBA broadcasting rights after this season. However, it has reached a deal with Disney to keep Inside the NBA going.
Barkley had previously admitted to conversations with NBC and Amazon, but his focus now is on staying with his longtime home at Turner -- if the workload is right.
In June, he initially announced that the 2024-25 season would be his last on television, regardless of the NBA's media rights situation. Now, his decision seems to hinge on finding the right balance moving forward.
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