Charles Barkley Giving Up "A Minimum Of $100M" To Stay At TNT So People Could Keep Their Jobs Is Why He's The GOAT

Tim Cattera. Getty Images.

I imagine most will agree that it's a travesty what is happening to Inside The NBA. I know there are still some legal shenanigans that are in the works around Warner Bros attempt to match Amazon's $1.8B TV rights offer, but on the surface things don't look great when it comes to keeping that show on the air in some capacity. The whole thing sucks.

At times there was hope that the crew would pivot, and take their talents to another network. There were rumblings about how they all had opt out clauses should TNT lose their NBA rights, and it's safe to say any network on the planet would open up their checkbook and hand over a blank check if it meant getting Chuck on their airwaves. If there's one thing that remains true about Barkley, it's that he puts asses in seats. If he's on the TV, you're watching. It doesn't really matter what it is, the guy always delivers.

Even with his opportunity to break free and cash in, what did Chuck decide to do? He reversed his earlier decision to retire after the 2024-25 season and stay with TNT for the remainder of his contract so people could keep their jobs. 

“I love my TNT Sports family. My (number one) 1 priority has been and always will be our people and keeping everyone together for as long as possible. We have the most amazing people, and they are the best at what they do. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with them both on the shows we currently have and new ones we develop together in the future. This is the only place for me,” Barkley said in a statement. “I have to say … I’ve been impressed by the leadership team who is fighting hard and have been aggressive in adding new properties to TNT Sports, which I am very excited about. I appreciate them and all of my colleagues for their continued support, and most importantly our fans. I’m going to give my all as we keep them entertained for years to come.”

A noble move for sure, but that's only half the story. 

It's one thing to decide to fulfill the rest of your current contract. It's another thing to make that decision while knowing you are turning down "a minimum of $100M". I don't care how much money you may have, $100M is still $100M and that's probably on the low end for what Chuck was being offered. He's been pretty open in the past about how he has more money than he'll ever need and all that stuff, but it's easy to talk the talk and another thing to actually walk the walk. 

There's a reason many consider Chuck to be a man of the people, and I'd say this is a pretty solid example of that. He knows he'll be fine wherever he goes or whatever happens in the future, but for the normal non-famous people this TNT/NBA battle is a big deal. I'm not sure how many other people in Chuck's spot pass up that sort of cash, because again, $100M is a lot of fucking money.

Instead, he went the Jalen Brunson route and took a $100M discount to stay where he is. Hopefully, all this karma will come back around and one day we'll learn that somehow, someway, Inside The NBA will live on. Thanks a lot Adam Silver you vampire-looking ass.