To absolutely no one's surprise, it looks like Charles Barkley is like . Barkley was . His telling us that he was retiring felt like something between a lash-out in frustration about the situation and a shrewd negotiating tactic.
But, the reality is he was almost certainly never going to leave. Barkley is just two years into 10-year, $210 million deal with TNT and is one of the highest paid media personalities in sports. He's not going anywhere.
So, if he's sticking around, what will Barkley do on TNT without the NBA? There are a few good answers already out there. Let's dig into them. Charles Barkley has always been a fixture in TNT's college basketball coverage for March Madness.
Sure, his and . But he also still gives that . He can do that a bit more with the college basketball team when the fall comes around, even if the NBA isn't around anymore.
TNT has a presence in hockey now with NHL games broadcasting on its network on Wednesdays. Charles Barkley seems to have a blast talking about hockey. Here he is talking to the TNT crew about the Stanley Cup final.
It's pretty good! I don't know if he can do this all the time, but I definitely wouldn't mind seeing a bit more of it. Like the NHL, I wouldn't say Charles Barkley is a golf aficionado by any stretch of the imagination. I wouldn't want to hear him on The Masters main broadcast or anything of that nature.
But when TNT does special events like it'd be great to hear Barkley bringing a bit of levity to the broadcast and having a good time. Plus, we'd talk about his golf swing some more. hasn't he? I know Charles Barkley doesn't have any social media, but man, this would be a fantastic opportunity to get him involved in a bit more social content.
Getting Barkley's instant reactions to NBA moves on the B/R app would be a bit of a change of pace from what we're used to. It might not even be as good. But I'm still eager to see how it'd work.
Think of a fusion between Sportscenter and That's something Turner could do to maximize having Barkley on its roster. He's tailormade for late-night TV, isn't he? Obviously, you need a sports hook to the show. But Barkley has so many opinions about so many other things and he's never afraid to share them no matter what others might think.
We know Barkley can talk about sports, but he's also done political commentary. He did a show with as well as some thought it might. TNT also gave Barkley a show The company is willing to try different angles with Charles.
The thing is, I don't even think the show needs to be that serious. Just take the crew, sit them down on a set and let them cook for an hour or so on primetime NBA nights. They'll talk about basketball, obviously, but the conversation might spill elsewhere, too.
It could be funny at times. It could be serious for others. That's the beauty of that show.
That's why it works. TNT should do everything it can to keep it going, and I think this would be a good way to ensure that..
