Kenny Smith is a mainstay on the wildly famous TNT show Inside The NBA. The former superstar is quite the analyst and reportedly earns around $4,000,0000 a year as part of the crew. However, he is not too loose-lipped with such information. The two-time NBA Champion does not want anyone to know exactly how much he makes, and would much rather hide behind Charles Barkley‘s new contract.
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Sir Charles was speculated to have signed a 10-year $200,000,000 contract with TNT. A whopping amount of cash that many believed wasn’t true. But, the suspense has finally been put to rest, as The Jet blurted out the details on Big Boy TV. Taking the attention away from his own contract extension.
Kenny Smith avoids sharing his TNT salary by hiding behind Charles Barkley’s $200,000,000 deal
Kenny Smith has become an iconic part of the TNT family, all thanks to his work on Inside the NBA. The Jet has been working with Turner Sports since 1999 alongside four of the biggest names in basketball.
The trio of Charles Barkley, Ernie Johnson, and Shaquille O’Neal make for great co-workers, and together, the four men are the funniest group in sports broadcasting. In fact, they recently all signed long-term deals with the company. And, for big bucks no less.
However, when he first started out, Kenny only earned about $100,000 a year. A fair amount, but his expenses were close to $150,000, making his early days with TNT quite difficult. But, with their new contracts, they’re swimming in money. Although, Smith has been reluctant about sharing the details of his deal. In fact, he took the attention off his contract by confirming Chuck’s $200,000,000 salary.
“I’m not gonna throw my salary out there. I’ll throw Charles out there. Charles got $200,000,000. A $200,000,000 deal over the next 10 years. It was in the papers and I never put mine in the papers. I ain’t trying to be followed home! All I know is that seven figures (were) was not heard of. I was making a $100,000 and it was costing me $150,000 to be there.”
It’s great to see Kenny finding so much success now. Although he did kind of throw Sir Charles under the bus to protect his interest, it’s not that big of a deal. After all, even Chuck doesn’t know if he’ll be there long enough to collect the whole $200 million.
Charles Barkley admits he could retire before getting his entire $200,000,000 cheque
The Round Mound of Rebound is certainly going to be cashing in on some big pay cheques from Turner Sports. The same goes for his colleagues. Everyone is in line for a big payday after their recent contract renewals. Even Shaq reportedly earns over $10 million a year with TNT.
However, as Barkley revealed, he may not be able to collect all $200,000,000. Why? Because he has plans to retire way before the 10-year contract is up.
It certainly would be sad to see Chuck go. But, at the age of 61, he just might be ready to go into holiday mode 24×7. And, given how much he’s given to TNT and the game of basketball, there can be no denying that his retirement is well-deserved.
