Amid news of the show Inside The NBA likely coming to an end, fans, players, legends, and even other analysts have given their flowers to the hosts of TNT. And as if things couldn’t get any worse for Charles Barkley his CNN Show with Gayle King was recently announced to have been canceled, something the NBA legend understandably didn’t take too well.
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Philadelphia 76ers legend Charles Barkley recently sat down for an interview with Jimmy Traina of SportsIllustrated, where he claimed that his show, ‘King Charles’ was never ‘canceled’. Instead, he revealed that he and King had ended it on their own accord.
“Me and Gayle King are really pissed right now. Because they said King Charles was canceled. I said, ‘First of all, they never said we were canceled. We were only supposed to do a limited run because I had to get back to my NBA job.”
“And they haven’t even had the common courtesy to say—then all the headlines, ‘King Charles canceled, King Charles canceled.’ And me and Gayle talk all the time like, ‘Hey, have they told you we were canceled?’”
Barkley’s anger on the matter is completely understandable. After all, this was his and Gayle’s decision, not the network’s. So, for it to claim that the show had been canceled was never going to rub the NBA legend the right way.
Worse yet, given what this comes in the midst of, this news was never going to rub Barkley the right way.
Charles Barkley on his future with TNT
The future of Inside The NBA on TNT Network is hanging in the balance. Other network companies like NBC are coming in strong to own the rights to broadcast NBA games. Consequently, Charles Barkley isn’t too confident that TNT may be able to retain its rights.
The Round Mound of Rebound recently opened up about the bidding war situation, and how everyone within the company has been taking it. He said,
“It’s nerve-racking for everybody. It’s very stressful, but I don’t think anybody knows [what’s going to happen]. Listen, I love TNT, I hope we keep it [the broadcasting rights]… but right now, I think I talked to Ernie [Johnson] last night. I think they’re going to make a decision by the end of the end of the day. And I don’t think any of us know what that decision is going to be.”
Charles Barkley has been vocal about his excitement at the prospect of retiring. However, he admitted that he did not enjoy seeing the situation the crew of Inside the NBA had been thrust into. And who would?
The negatives around this situation just never seem to end, whether it be from the perspective of the fans, analysts, or the crew of TNT. The only hope now remains that some miracle comes about to keep this beloved show going, even if it’s for just one season longer.
