Charles Barkley won't retire, to stay with TNT even if no NBA - ESPN

Charles Barkley intends to remain with TNT Sports through the remainder of his contract.

The Hall of Fame player announced Tuesday that he will not retire next season, reversing the announcement he made in June during the NBA Finals.

Barkley said at the time that the 2024-25 season would be his last on television no matter what eventually happened with the NBA's media deal negotiations. He signed a 10-year contract extension with TNT Sports in 2022.

Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of TNT Sports, has sued the NBA in New York state court after the league did not accept the company's matching offer for one of the packages in its new 11-year media rights deal, which will begin with the 2025-26 season.

«I love my TNT Sports family. My No. 1 priority has been and always will be our people and keeping everyone together for as long as possible,» Barkley said in a statement. "… 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. 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'm going to give my all as we keep [fans] entertained for years to come.»

ESPN/ABC, NBC and Amazon Prime Video were expected to try to court Barkley before Tuesday's announcement. «Inside the NBA» host Ernie Johnson has also said he intends to remain with TNT, but the futures of Shaquille O'Neal and Kenny Smith remain uncertain.

Barkley joined TNT in 2000 and has been a part of the iconic «Inside the NBA» show, which has won 21 Sports Emmy Awards and has been a model for studio shows. Barkley took home his