Barkley announced his retirement in June during the NBA Finals after reports began to emerge that TNT could lose the NBA rights. “These people I work with, they screwed this thing up, clearly,” Barkley said in May.
Last month, when the NBA made its new deals official — they are worth around $76 billion over 11 years — Barkley criticized the move to Amazon as a money grab and bad for fans.
TNT’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, then filed a lawsuit against the league, arguing its current contract gives it the right to match Amazon’s new deal.
The lawsuit is pending, and it remains possible it could lead to some sort of settlement with the league.
Barkley has been of the longtime hosts of the popular “Inside the NBA” pre- and postgame show on TNT’s NBA coverage. He has also branched out beyond basketball, hosting a since-canceled show with Gayle King on CNN that touched on current events and cultural issues.
Barkley signed a 10-year contract with TNT in 2022. He recently told “The Dan Patrick Show” that his deal is worth a total of $210 million.
“I love my TNT Sports family,” Barkley said in a statement distributed by TNT. “My #1 priority has been and always will be our people and keeping everyone together for as long as possible.
