On Wednesday, the NBA announced that it had rejected Warner Bros. Discovery’s claim that they had the right to match Amazon Prime Video’s portion of the new media rights package. Along with that, they officially announced their new partnership, as well as new media agreements with NBC Sports and Disney/ESPN.
That would mean that this upcoming NBA season will be the final one in which NBA games will be broadcast on TNT. It also means this is the final season for their Inside the NBA studio show , and could mean the end of Charles Barkley’s broadcasting career .
“Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the NBA said in their statement. “Throughout these negotiations, our primary objective has been to maximize the reach and accessibility of our games for our fans. Our new arrangement with Amazon supports this goal by complementing the broadcast, cable, and streaming packages that are already part of our new Disney and NBCUniversal arrangements. All three partners have also committed substantial resources to promote the league and enhance the fan experience.
“We are grateful to Turner Sports for its award-winning coverage of the NBA and look forward to another season of the NBA on TNT.”
Given what was at stake and how committed WBD seemed to be to remain in the NBA business, you had to figure that a response was forthcoming. That response arrived Wednesday afternoon.
“We have matched the Amazon offer, as we have a contractual right to do, and do not believe the NBA can reject it,” said TNT Sports in a statement. “In doing so, they are rejecting the many fans who continue to show their unwavering support for our best-in-class coverage, delivered through the full combined reach of WBD’s video-first distribution platforms – including TNT, home to our four-decade partnership with the league, and Max, our leading streaming service.
“We think they have grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the 2025-2026 season and beyond, and we will take appropriate action.
“We look forward, however, to another great season of the NBA on TNT and Max including our iconic Inside the NBA.”
In case that didn’t read clearly enough for you, expect some lawyers to start racking up billable hours very shortly over this situation.
TNT Sports is very correct in saying there was a groundswell of fan support, specifically for the Inside the NBA show and its collection of broadcasters and former players. In recent days, Warner Bros. Discovery, TNT’s parent company, seemed to be doing a little astroturfing along those lines to drum up sentimental support for their programming as well.
However, it was always clear that the NBA’s goal in the new media deal (aside from tripling its financial take) was to expand its digital and global footprint . Bringing on Amazon and partnering with NBC (and Peacock) helped them accomplish that goal in a way that just didn’t seem to fit with WBD/TNT.
The ball remains in WBD’s court in how this proceeds as the NBA has made it clear they’re considering the matter settled. It’s hard to imagine that they’ve got much of a chance of turning this around in the next year. The real questions are likely to be around Inside the NBA and what happens to the show as well as where their crew ends up going.
[ TNT Sports ]
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