Charles Barkley left himself an out if TNT lost to the NBA.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Comcast is making a $2.5 billion annual bid to strip Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT of the NBA’s rights to broadcast games on NBC and Peacock. .
This naturally led to the question of what would happen to Barkley and the legendary “Inside the NBA” crew.
In an interview with ESPN Cleveland, the 61-year-old Barkley was asked if he had seen the NBC coverage and revealed the elements of the deal that favor him.
“Obviously we saw it. It’s a really big deal. To be honest, I covered my butt,” Barkley said.
“I [spoke for] Andrew Marchand’s article in today’s New York Times. I just signed a 10 year contract two years ago and one of the things I did was opt out after a couple of years because I wanted to make sure I laid low if I wanted to when it came to this situation. . To go to Amazon…
“Because, to be honest, we thought it was going to be Apple. So what I did with the new deal…I sat down and said, ‘Wait a minute.’ If you guys If we lose to the NBA, I want to be able to get out of here. ” Actually, I’m in a really great position. ”
The Post reported in 2022 that Barkley signed a 10-year contract with TNT worth “well over” $100 million.
Given the skyrocketing broadcast salaries for top-tier difference-makers like Barkley, he could be ordered to take a raise if TNT loses to the NBA and becomes a free agent. be.
In an interview with ESPN Cleveland, Barkley admitted he was surprised by NBC’s offer.
“We knew it was going to be Amazon and Apple, but NBC came out of nowhere,” Barclay said.
“I love TNT. They’ve been great to me. But if they lose to the NBA, I wanted to make sure all my I’s were dotted and all my T’s were crossed out. is.”
While ESPN appears to be in agreement to keep its NBA TV package, The Athletic reported earlier this week that Amazon and the NBA are preparing a “framework” for a deal.
