Much like the outspoken Pat McAfee, Charles Barkley is making it clear that he won’t shy away from speaking his mind or downplay his commitment to ESPN’s goals.
Barkley is already taking shots at ESPN ahead of his first appearance on the network, which will be hosting “Inside the NBA” next season.
“I won’t change who I am,” Barkley stated during an episode of Outkick’s “Don’t Do It @Me with Dan Dakich,” as reported.
“There’s no way they can fire me. I earn too much for that to happen. Honestly, if they try to let me go, I should be getting paid for seven years, which means I want to leave before that even starts.”
ESPN is set to license “NBA Inside the NBA” after TNT Sports loses its broadcast rights, and it’s known that Barkley inked a hefty 10-year, $210 million deal in 2022 as an analyst for one of the premier basketball pre-game and post-game shows.
That said, Barkley doesn’t appear to have any interest in appearing on shows like “Get Up,” “First Take,” or “Sports Center,” which he has been a part of before.
Especially not if that means sharing airtime with ESPN’s NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins.
“I’ll do what I want,” Barkley noted. “I don’t let anyone dictate what I say or do. It frustrates me when ESPN says things like, ‘The Lakers are contenders.’ I mean, no, they’re not.”
Barkley revealed he had thought about retiring after this season but needed to clarify his dedication to TNT after the transition.
“It’s a mix of excitement and frustration for me. I really don’t understand how all of this will work. The idea that I should be working more as I grow older—well, that doesn’t seem realistic,” he added.
