NBA fans have received some awesome news. The Wall Street Journal has reported that the Emmy Award-winning NBA studio show Inside the NBA will now be on ESPN and ABC, starting with the 2025-26 season. This announcement was part of a bigger settlement between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), the parent company of TNT Sports, and the NBA. This settlement is a result of a lawsuit over NBA media rights that has been ongoing. TNT is losing NBA games, which is a massive loss for the network. NBA fans can rejoice, however, because Inside the NBA, the NBA’s best studio show, will live on.
Basketball’s Best Talk Show Is Changing Networks
Inside the NBA and NBA Media Rights
The problems started when the NBA rejected WBD’s claim that it had matched a competing $1.8 billion offer from Amazon for a new NBA media rights deal. Now resolved, the settlement says that WBD will maintain control of some NBA-related content, even as it loses the rights to broadcast games in the U.S. after this season.
For NBA fans, a huge part of the deal is the licensing of Inside the NBA to the Disney-owned networks ESPN and ABC. Despite the move, WBD will retain production responsibilities, and the show will continue to broadcast from its Atlanta studio. The best news, however, is that Ernie Johnson Jr., Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal will remain with the program.
The show has also picked up other basketball legends over the last few years. Current and former NBA and WNBA players have sat in during different episodes. Draymond Green, Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, Candace Parker, and Vince Carter have all joined the crew at some time.
The Inside the NBA crew talking about what it’d be like if the show was on ESPN was hilarious
but now it’s more funny than I ever could’ve imagined pic.twitter.com/kEvOtHvEuW
— Kris Pursiainen (@krispursiainen) November 17, 2024
The New Inside the NBA Schedule
The show will air during important moments in the NBA calendar, including opening night, Christmas Day, the playoffs, and the NBA Finals. For NBA fans, this is huge. They may not get to enjoy games on the TNT network, but their favorite show won’t be ending as some expected.
When the media rights deal was originally announced, it was unclear if Inside the NBA was in its last season. Barkley even announced his retirement (which he later decided against), increasing the worry of fans of the show. Now, it looks like our favorite NBA personalities will still follow the NBA season with us.
The Changes in NBA Media Rights
For WBD, the settlement is only a half-victory. They get to keep international NBA broadcasting rights in regions such as northern Europe and Latin America, except Mexico and Brazil. It will also continue managing the NBA’s digital operations, including platforms like NBA TV, Bleacher Report, and House of Highlights, for the next five years.
However, the loss of NBA games on TNT marks the end of an era. Some of the greatest NBA moments have been enjoyed on TNT since 1989. Although the network will no longer get to broadcast great NBA moments, there are surely more fun talk-show moments with the Inside the NBA crew ahead.
