“Inside The NBA” Is Still The Best Sports Show Out There
“Inside The NBA” on TNT remains the best sports television show out there.
Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, Shaquille O’Neal, and Ernie Johnson are so fun to watch break down the game. If that’s what you want to call it. They keep it lighthearted, fun, entertaining, and honest. And yet — still find time to mix in some analysis. Oftentimes they are thinking what we’re thinking and say what we want to say, but they just do it on a bigger stage with a national platform behind them. Knowing what they may say will upset a few people with their thoughts and opinions, but they just don’t worry about it.
Collectively, what they have done as a studio show has changed what others want to do on their networks. No matter the sport. Last hockey season, even the NHL — with their new Turner Broadcasting deal — have decided to put their own studio show together. Incorporating Barkley and others into their programming. Other networks may not do it exactly as the “Inside The NBA” group. But you can tell just by watching those other shows where the influence most likely came from. It’s best that they try to be unique in their own way. No one has proven that they can do it like TNT does.
Before the 2022-23 campaign got underway, the foursome all reached new deals to keep doing the show during the basketball season and this was great news for fans of the show. When reports surfaced that Barkley was flirting with the new not-so-popular LIV Golf, there were many who were hoping that Barkley wouldn’t go in that direction, instead staying with his running mates. Whether you’re watching on a Tuesday or Thursday night, you almost certainly get the best basketball show on television. And to be honest, it’s sometimes better than the actual basketball being played. Just sit back and enjoy the show on a night like that and Barkley will tell you himself.
