Inside the NBA will move forward on ESPN because Jimmy Pitaro cares.<\/p>\n
Or, as Awful Announcing owner and editor Ben Koo put it<\/a>, everyone\u2019s favorite NBA pregame show will survive because ESPN\u2019s president \u201cgave a sh*t.\u201d<\/p>\n But that survival comes with plenty of uncertainty.<\/p>\n Inside the NBA will air its final episode on TNT Sports after the Eastern Conference Finals. After that, the show that became synonymous with NBA coverage will officially be licensed to ESPN. What will the ESPN version look like? Nobody really knows yet.<\/p>\n We do know Charles Barkley, Shaquille O\u2019Neal, Ernie Johnson, and Kenny Smith will be involved.<\/p>\n Johnson said in March that, as far as he knows<\/a>, the plan is to keep things mostly the same. The show will still be produced in Atlanta with the same crew, but it will air on ESPN or ABC instead of TNT. Still, there\u2019s a lingering sense of discomfort.<\/p>\n Smith called the move \u201cuncomfortable<\/a>.\u201d Barkley has already dared a company that technically doesn\u2019t employ him to fire him<\/a>. He\u2019s openly criticized ESPN\u2019s NBA coverage<\/a>, slammed the idea of being run through the \u201ccar wash\u201d of its usual programming<\/a>, and made clear he\u2019s not here to play the corporate game.<\/p>\n Even with Barkley\u2019s unease<\/a>, ESPN leadership insists the plan is to keep the crew intact.<\/p>\n \u201cI have not heard any false notes. My understanding is we\u2019re keeping the band together,\u201d Pitaro told Front Office Sports<\/a> last week.<\/p>\n Barkley signed a 10-year deal with TNT<\/a> in 2022, but he\u2019s indicated he only wants to stay on Inside the NBA for two more years \u2014 no more, no less. Remember, this is the same man who already tried to retire<\/a> before canceling his own farewell tour<\/a>. O\u2019Neal re-upped with a $15 million-a-year contract with TNT<\/a> in February, and Smith and Johnson are expected to remain, according to FOS.<\/p>\n