For the longest time, the NBA has been broadcasted by TNT and the possible end of the league’s time on the network has weighed heavily on everyone. Inside the NBA host Charles Barkley shared more of his mind on the matter and what may happen soon.
In a landmark 11-year deal, Amazon’s Prime Video has secured the exclusive global streaming rights for the NBA and WNBA. Starting in the 2025-26 season, Prime Video will stream 66 regular-season games, including an opening-week doubleheader, a new Black Friday game, and all games from the Emirates NBA Cup’s Knockout Rounds. Prime Video will also have exclusive rights to the Playoffs, with coverage of the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament, first- and second-round games, and Conference Finals in six of the 11 years.
For the WNBA, Prime Video will exclusively stream 30 regular-season games per season globally, as well as the Commissioner’s Cup Championship game, and a selection of postseason games, including one first-round series, seven Semifinal series, and three Finals.
The deal significantly expands Prime Video’s sports offerings, which already include the NFL, UEFA Champions League, NASCAR, NHL, WNBA, NWSL, and more. This partnership aims to bring the excitement of basketball to Prime members around the world, leveraging Prime Video’s massive subscriber base to drive the growth and reach of these popular leagues.
Charles Barkley Shares About Possible End of NBA on TNT Amid Media Rights Issue
22 Charles Barkley At Event
With TNT about to lose the rights, fans will wonder what will happen to how the NBA will be covered. In an episode of Podcast P with Philadelphia 76ers All-Star wing Paul George, Barkley shared his thoughts on the matter.
“So these people become part of your family. I mean if you think about you’ve been working with the same people for 24 years and because what’s really interesting, we work one day a week during the regular season, but during the playoffs we work every night for two straight months.
So if you see the same people for two straight months for 24 years, you know them, their kids, their husbands, you know their wives…this has been really depressing for me because we kind of knew we were going to lose the thing. I mean, it was one of the worst kept secrets in the history of civilization. So we were traveling for the conference finals and then we did a couple games on NBA TV in the finals and I was taking everybody out trying to keep their spirits up and they were like, man, I’m married, I got a wife, I got kids, I got a mortgage and I ain’t got no fucking job and it really hurt me.
It really hurt me that people–my friends was talking like that and I was like, man, I ain’t never been in that situation in my life where I was going to lose my job and I had a family to take care of and it was really heartbreaking…So that was painful and surreal for me and that hurt me the most. So it just really sucks, man and I can’t believe we screwed it up. I can’t believe we screwed it up. So next year’s going to be a bittersweet year.”
For his part, Barkley announced a long-term commitment to TNT Sports. He signed a 10-year contract extension in 2022 and has now reversed his previous plan to retire after the 2024-25 season. He expressed his love for the TNT family and excitement about the network’s expanding sports portfolio, stating he looks forward to entertaining fans for years to come.
Although the whole ordeal has been heavy for those involved, the issue has now been resolved with Amazon getting the rights. In any case, expect Barkley to do what he does best for TNT when their deal with the NBA ends next year.
26 Charles Barkley At Event
For More Great Basketball Content
Follow me on Twitter at @BeatKit22 and follow us @HardwoodHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in college and professional sports, click here!
