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TNT’s ‘Inside the NBA’ will move to ESPN as part of league’s media rights deal

TNT will produce the show with its original cast from its studio in Atlanta, but it will run on ESPN and ABC through the regular season and playoffs.

The "Inside the NBA" studio crew (from left): Shaquille O'Neal, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley.
The "Inside the NBA" studio crew (from left): Shaquille O'Neal, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley.Read moreEdward M. Pio Roda/Turner Sports

TNT won’t be televising NBA games after the 2024-25 season, but its hit pregame show Inside the NBA will live on, thanks to a new licensing agreement between TNT Sports and ESPN.

TNT will produce the show with its original cast from its studio in Atlanta, but it will be televised by ESPN and ABC through the NBA regular season and playoffs, in exchange for ESPN granting TNT the right to televise 13 Big 12 football games and 15 Big 12 men’s basketball games each season.

The move headlines an 11-year agreement between TNT and the NBA, which includes global highlight rights for properties like Bleacher Report and House of Highlights, advertising support on its networks from the NBA, and the right to televise NBA games in select international markets.

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Warner Bros. Discovery had sued the NBA, claiming the league failed to allow TNT to use matching rights on a package of live games after granting the NBA media rights package to ESPN, NBC, and Amazon. The agreement marks the end of the legal dispute between the NBA and the network.

“The opportunity to continue the iconic and Emmy Award-winning Inside the NBA is a huge win for basketball fans everywhere,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a release. “We look forward to building on our long-standing partnership with TNT Sports and working together to promote NBA content across key WBD and NBA platforms.”

Inside the NBA features Sixers legend Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson. The show has run since 1989 and has had the same four hosts since 2011. Barkley had previously threatened to retire at the end of the 2024-25 season before signing an extension with TNT Sports to stay on the network. Barkley, O’Neal, Johnson, and Smith will remain TNT employees and be eligible to be featured on other TNT programming.