Adam Lefkoe addresses NBA on TNT’s future

A hot topic in the sports media landscape has been the impending end of the hit TNT studio show Inside the NBA after TNT was outbid by NBC for an NBA broadcast rights deal.

Despite hints that Charles Barkley wants to make the show independent with his own production company, there are very real concerns that Inside the NBA could end after the upcoming 2024-25 season if the independent route doesn’t come to fruition.

TNT Sports’ Adam Lefkoe, who wears multiple hats at the network, including serving as an alternate host for Inside the NBA on Tuesdays in place of Ernie Johnson, spoke about the future of the show during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show on Friday.

During the interview, Lefkoe discussed the reality that many quality employees who played a big part in making the show behind the scenes will be out of work if the show is no longer.

“What really hit me when I was watching (Charles) Barkley’s recent thing… Because he is always talking about the people at TNT. That is what I keep thinking about now,” said Lefkoe. “The hundreds of people that… I’m thinking about the fact that we all use Photoshop today. And there’s a guy named Alex who has been there for like decades. And he’s the guy that invented putting Charles Barkley’s head on something else. Like, think about how ahead of its time that was. And now that guy, who is a friend to all of us… I’m like, man, I really hope Alex is okay.

“I had hoped there was going to be a fourth smaller package. I hope that they can match. But this sounds way above my pay grade on a lot of forms.”

Only time will tell whether TNT can figure out a way to save Inside the NBA. But considering the NBA recently finalized its agreement with Disney, NBC Universal and Amazon Prime Video, the three broadcast rights partners for the 2025-26 season, the clock is ticking for TNT Sports to exercise their right to match Amazon’s NBA package.

[The Dan Patrick Show on YouTube]