Tag: Charles Barkley

The Match with Bill Murray, Mark Wahlberg, Charles Barkley, Wayne Gretzky and more starts Thursday

TNT is going big with the 10th installment of The Match.

TNT is going big with the 10th installment of The Match.

This time around, it’ll be a two-night event in prime time with no pro golfers but eight big-time celebrities as well as a star-studded announcing crew.

Dubbed “The Match: Superstars,” the competition will be televised on Thursday, Nov. 21, and Friday, Nov. 22, with coverage simulcast on TNT and Max. The event was filmed at The Breakers Rees Jones Golf Course at Breakers West Country Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Check out the celebrity lineup: Bill Murray, Mark Wahlberg, Charles Barkley, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Phelps, Nate Bargatze, Ken Griffey, Jr. and Blake Griffin.

The initial matches will pit Murray and Gretzky against Barkley and Griffey as well as Wahlberg and Phelps vs. Bargatze and Griffin.

There will then be semifinals and a final match. Those will be individual match play contests with the eventual winner banking $1 million.

Thursday Nov. 21

  • Wahlberg/Phelps vs. Bargatze/Griffin, 7:30 p.m.
  • Barkley/Griffey Jr. vs. Gretzky/Murray, 9 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 22

  • Semifinals, 7:30 p.m.
  • Final match, 9 p.m.

Calling the action is TNT’s Ernie Johnson, back at the Match for a fifth time. He’s joined by Charles Barkley, who will be making his ninth appearance at The Match as either a player or commentator. Also, a pair of Masters champs – Trevor Immelman and Bubba Watson – will provide analysis. Kathryn Tappen returns as the on-course reporter.

In September, Golfweek reported on a Match featuring Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler against Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau. That PGA Tour vs. LIV event is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 17 in Las Vegas.

Here are some photos from The Match Superstars.

Shaq reportedly does not have a contract for Inside the NBA before its big ESPN syndication

Would this show even work without Shaq?

Now that we know Inside the NBA will air on ESPN, the good news is that the iconic TV program will continue beyond just this season.

There is still a lot we do not know, however, and that includes whether or not Shaquille O’Neal is part of the team. While there was some talk that Charles Barkley would retire from sports media at the end of the 2024-25 season, he has since change his mind and will return to Turner Sports.

Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith will also remain with the network and will continue the show during its migration to ESPN. But as for Shaq, his future is actually uncertain.

Here is more from Jimmy Traina (via Sports Illustrated):

“Sources say O’Neal’s contract with WBD expires on July 1, 2025.

O’Neal has a slightly different deal than his three castmates because they do other things for WBD, including the NCAA tournament. Shaq’s deal is strictly for the NBA and it’s up in about eight months.

While sources say Shaq wants to remain on the show, he’s frustrated that there has been congratulations and press releases hyping that Inside the NBA is remaining the same while he is currently not under contract to be with the company next season.”

The show would simply not be the same without Shaq, whose chemistry especially with Barkley is unparalleled.

Shaq still has plenty of time to strike a deal with either Warner Brothers Discovery, ESPN, Amazon, or NBC before next season begins.

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Social media reacts to ‘Inside The NBA’ heading to ESPN, ABC next season: ‘They’ll cover the Finals, we are so back’

NBA fans got huge news on Saturday: The ‘Inside The NBA’ show will be back. Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal are heading to ESPN and ABC next season as part of an out-of-court settlement between Warner Brothers …

NBA fans got huge news on Saturday: The ‘Inside The NBA’ show will be back. Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal are heading to ESPN and ABC next season as part of an out-of-court settlement between Warner Brothers Discovery and the NBA.

Here’s how social media initially reacted:

Charles Barkley was so awful on Who He Play For and guessed a team that doesn’t exist

Charles Barkley continues to not have any idea who these guys play for.

Death, taxes, and Charles Barkley appearing on on the Inside the NBA segment “Who He Play For” with incorrect guesses.

These are all inevitable truths about existence and Barkley confirmed the latter yet again with a putrid performance on Thursday night. During his latest appearance for NBA on TNT, the former NBA MVP reminded fans around the world just how bad he is at this game.

The rules are simple: His co-hosts name a player and Barkley simply has to tell the viewers at home what uniforms that individual wears. But sadly, his knowledge of role players around the league is fairly minimal and he always strikes out.

This year was no exception was Barkley got just one correct and it was after a clue from his co-host, Kenny Smith.

Perhaps his lowest moment was guessing the “New Jersey Nets” for Taj Gibson, which is particularly shocking because that team does not exist. The Nets moved to Brooklyn in 2012.

Barkley also failed to correctly identify which team employs Garrett Temple, which is particularly surprising because Temple is a recurring theme of this segment. His employment status is asked every year, so Barkley easily could have studied up on that player in particular.

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Is TNT’s Inside the NBA done after the 2024-25 season? Here’s the latest.

Enjoy Inside the NBA while you still can.

The NBA season tips off on Tuesday, and fans watching on TNT will be probably be quick to notice a nostalgic tone in both the pregame show and broadcast.

TNT’s award-winning studio show, Inside the NBA, is heading into its 35th season. But rather than celebrating the successful run and looking forward to the future, it’s going to be a goodbye for Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal.

After a lengthy bidding process, the NBA opted to reach an 11-year agreement with Amazon, Disney and NBC Universal starting in the 2025-26 season. That meant that Warner Bros. Discovery — formerly Turner Sports — lost out on its bid to retain the NBA rights.

https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1848786506938520064

What’s the latest on the show’s status?

While Warner Bros. Discovery is in a Hail Mary lawsuit with the NBA to retain the rights, the expectation is that this will be the final season for NBA basketball on TNT and Inside the NBA as a studio show.

And despite the lack of NBA basketball, Charles Barkley is remaining with Warner Bros. Discovery to commentate on its other properties like March Madness, NHL, MLB, golf and maybe we’ll even see Chuck talk about some U.S. soccer. They’ll keep him busy.

Still, it’s the end of an era for NBA fans, and Inside the NBA is almost definitely done after this season.

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TNT put together an awesome tribute to Inside the NBA ahead of the show’s 35th and final season

No, YOU’RE crying.

The opening of the 2024-25 NBA season will certainly be a bittersweet evening across the Turner studios in Atlanta on Tuesday. With the award-winning studio show Inside the NBA heading into its 35th season, it will also be the last season we’ll get to see Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal together behind the desk.

Despite some litigation in an attempt to retain the NBA television rights, Warner Bros. Discovery (formerly Turner Sports) is all but certain to lose NBA broadcasting privileges after this season. It will be the end of an era for NBA fans, and team Inside the NBA team put together such a good tribute to the show on Tuesday.

Check it out:

No, YOU’RE crying.

It’s the best studio show in American sports, and the league just won’t be the same without it next year (and beyond).

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Shaq dismantled Charles Barkley’s rant about the WNBA being petty with Caitlin Clark

Here’s why Shaq disagrees with Charles Barkley calling WNBA players “petty.”

Shaquille O’Neal has avidly supported his friend and colleague, Charles Barkley. But he disagrees with Barkley’s assessment of Caitlin Clark‘s WNBA transition.

Barkley made waves early this year when he called out the league for being “petty” towards Clark. His words eventually reached high-profile players like A’ja Wilson and even fellow rookie Angel Reese. Wilson took the high road when asked to comment at the time, but Reese seemingly called Barkley out.

The narrative that WNBA players are “jealous” of Caitlin has continued throughout the season. But Shaq isn’t quite buying it. Per Lindsay Schnell, here’s what he recently shared with USA TODAY:

“There’s envious jealousy. There’s professional jealousy,” O’Neal said. “Sure, there’s a lot of people who are professionally jealous. I am. I’m professionally jealous of a lot of people. I’m professionally jealous of Steph [Curry]. He makes $60 million. But hey, that’s life.”

“You gotta also understand that we’re not just going to give it to you because everybody else is giving it to you…Yeah, you’re great, but you ain’t that great yet. Calm down. We still got Diana Taurasi. We still got A’ja Wilson, if you’re gonna give [Caitlin] props make sure our girls that are dominating in this league get the same props.”

“Loudmouths like Chuck are talking about hating — it’s not hating…As good as Caitlin Clark is, we’ve had a lot of young ladies who have been doing good [before] and not getting props. People like props, and they want to feel good when you’re talking about [their league]…it’s not hating. Everybody has to wait their turn.”

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The Match: Looking back at all nine made-for-TV golf matches

Which version of The Match was your favorite?

It’s been nearly six years since the first edition of The Match, the made-for-TV series of silly season golf events featuring everyone from PGA Tour legends to current NFL and NBA all-stars.

In that time, golf fans have been treated to seven different matches, most recently the first to be played using a mixed-team format.

Even though the first edition of The Match – Woods vs. Phil Mickelson in November 2018 in Las Vegas – didn’t quite live up to the hype, it proved there was a market for the competition. Over the years the matches have grown into charitable causes benefitting COVID-19 relief and HBCU’s while still providing golf fans a unique product outside of 72-hole stroke-play tournaments.

Charles Barkley had a selfless explanation for turning down $100 million to stay at TNT

All class from Sir Charles.

When Warner Bros. Discovery lost the NBA broadcasting rights to NBC and Amazon, the news effectively meant that the game’s best studio show, Inside the NBA, will end after the upcoming season. And it also meant that Charles Barkley could have been among the most sought after sports media free agents ever.

That made his decision to stay with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports (formerly Turner Sports) and TNT all the more shocking. Instead of retiring or moving to ESPN/NBC/Amazon, Barkley decided to remain loyal to the team he’s worked with for decades in sports media. And he was well aware of just how much money he was potentially leaving on the table by doing so.

The reason behind that, though, was pure class from Barkley.

In an interview with Dan Le Batard, Barkley said that he left a minimum $100 million on the table by staying with WBD Sports.

But for him, his top priority was keeping all the people employed whom he has worked with at TNT. He said:

“As long as I got my people safe at TNT, man, I feel really good.”

He joked that he would actually have to do work had he gone to one of the other networks, so he was more than thrilled to stay at WBD (which still has March Madness, NHL and MLB playoff rights). TNT will have options for Barkley going forward.

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Charles Barkley will listen to offers from rival networks in next TV contracts

Charles Barkley said he will entertain offers from rival networks after TNT Sports loses its rights to broadcast NBA games.

Charles Barkley said Friday on the “Dan Patrick Show” that he will entertain offers from rival networks after TNT Sports loses its rights to broadcast NBA games after the 2024-25 season.

The NBA announced this week that it will renew its partnership with the Walt Disney Company (ABC, ESPN) and enter into new agreements with NBCUniversal (NBC, Peacock) and Amazon (Prime Video) to telecast games beginning with the 2025-26 season.

The contracts are reportedly worth roughly $76 billion over 11 years.

TNT Sports intended to use its right to match the offer made by Amazon, though that attempt was rejected by the NBA. The home of “NBA on TNT” announced Friday that it has taken legal action against the league to remain a broadcast partner.

As it stands, the NBA will broadcast on TNT for one more season, leaving the futures of Barkley and co-hosts Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith up in the air.

“I just feel sadness for the people I work with,” Barkley said. “A lot of great people are going to lose their job. I’ve been with these guys for 24 years. You see them have kids, you see them graduate high school, you see them graduate college. … I’m not worried about me, Shaq, Kenny and Ernie, but I’m really concerned about the people behind the scenes.”

Barkley, who has completed two years of a 10-year, $210 million contract, reiterated that he intends to retire from television following next season, a notion that the Hall of Famer first said during the NBA Finals when details of the TV negotiations were made public.

The former 11-time All-Star said he negotiated his contract with TNT Sports so that he could become a free agent after next season when the network could lose its rights. TNT Sports can either guarantee his contract or offer him a pay cut, which he would not accept.

“They’re either going to have to guarantee the whole 10 years, or they’re going to have to ask me to take a pay cut, which, under no circumstances, am I taking a pay cut,” Barkley said. “(There are) zero chances of me taking a pay cut.”

Barkley said he has spoken with the Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal and Amazon within the past three months about potential opportunities. He said he’d “be stupid not to take their call” as the 61-year-old weighs his future in television after next season.

He isn’t sure what the future holds, though was pleased that no decision has to be made for several months. However, he is positive that next season could go down as one of their best together.

“I love TNT so much and the people here, I don’t know if I want to go to another network,” Barkley said. “I’ll never say never but, right now, my intention is to stay and go out with a bang. We’re going to give everything we got next year.”

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