Charles Barkley could be a smash hit on AEW's broadcast team

The NBA has struck a new partnership deal with Amazon, NBC and ESPN , thus ending their relationship with TNT after the 2024-24 NBA Season. According to Charles Barkley, who was speaking on a recent episode of "The Dan Patrick Show," TNT aims to continue producing its iconic "Inside The NBA," although there's currently no plan for how that would look without NBA games to air it with.

“TNT flew to Philly last week, and they said, ‘We’re gonna keep doing the show.’ And I’m like, ‘What?’ And they’re like, ‘We’re gonna keep doing the show,'” Barkley said. “I don’t have any idea what that means. I think they’re gonna try to figure it out. We won’t have the NBA, so I think they’re gonna try to figure it out."

However, AEW's Tony Khan could look to poach the fan-favorite broadcaster once the NBA season concludes next year. During an appearance on "The Dan Le Batard Show," Khan opened the door to Barkley potentially joining the company's broadcast team. Barkley would likely team up with Taz, Excalibur and Tony Schiavone as part of the broadcast rotation.

"Charles Barkley is a wrestling fan, I think," Khan said. "We presented the Inside The NBA team with AEW Championship belts. He was great and very gracious... I don’t know what the future of the NBA holds, but Charles Barkley, as far as being one of the top hosts in all of sports and being one of the most entertaining people in all of television, I think he adds to any sport he’s involved in. If he wanted to come to AEW, we would love that. Absolutely, I would encourage that and support that.”

Given that AEW only records shows twice per week and often uses different hosts between Dynamite and Collision, Barkley could potentially sign with the company while still keeping his role with TNT. However, it's likely that an agreement would need to be struck between all parties.

Nevertheless, Barkley's fun-loving and outspoken personality would fit well with AEW. He would be given the freedom to be himself, hoping his personality would draw a new set of casual viewers. He could become AEW's answer to the ever-popular Pat McAfee, who spends portions of the year as part of Monday Night RAW's broadcast team.

Khan could also position Barkley to hold post-match interviews or a spin-off show where he interviews the talents to advance storylines. After all, AEW needs to bounce back after a difficult few months, and bringing in a genuine celebrity could be what moves the needle.

There's no guarantee Barkley would entertain the switch, as it would significantly change his career and take him away from a league that he's been part of for most of his adult life. Still, if AEW can entice him to join the company, it should certainly explore every avenue to make that happen.