Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson are going to have a new home next season when “Inside the NBA” makes the transition to ESPN. So far, it’s looking like the show will be very similar to the one beloved by fans.
During an appearance on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Friday, O’Neal insisted that neither he nor Barkley will ever change, while praising the professionalism of Johnson and Smith. He also hinted at having a situation similar to “The Pat McAfee Show” which is also syndicated by ESPN from a different company.
O’Neal’s response:
“I don’t have any concerns because I know one guy that you’re never going to change, and I know another guy that’s really close to him. The other two guys — listen, Ernie is a consummate professional and he can adapt to any situation. Ernie is the guy that really keeps us out of trouble and Kenny is professional, but Chuck is right there on the line and I’m right below Chuck. Chuck’s not changing, I’m not changing.
“I actually saw something yesterday where it said ESPN is going to give us the same no-look that they give Pat McAfee. So, listen, we’re just going to go have fun, do what we do and talk about the game that we love and just try to make people laugh.”
Eisen noted that his own show is in a similar situation, with a return to ESPN coming this fall.
The “Inside the NBA” crew recently wrapped its lengthy run on TNT, where it had become an iconic part of the NBA media ecosystem. When TNT’s parent company of Warner Bros. Discovery lost its NBA rights, the future of the show was in question until the network cut a deal with ESPN.
TNT will continue to independently produce the show while airing it on ESPN, which reportedly plans to give the show its usual timeframe. Barkley has made perfectly clear he has no plans to change to fit in better at ESPN given how much he has blasted some of hisfuture co-workers in recent months.
Barkley has also said he plans to retire after two more seasons, though he’s walked back retirement plans before.
