Charles Barkley Reveals He Walked Away From Potentially Earning $100 Million So TNT Staff Could Keep Their Jobs

Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley Reveals He Walked Away From Potentially Earning $100 Million So TNT Staff Could Keep Their Jobs

Retired basketball star Charles Barkley is doing his best to support employees amid turbulent production changes.

The sports anchor recently shared that he’s turned down at least $100 million worth of offers in order to keep his current production team employed.

Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley spoke about the choice to renew his contract with TNT’s Turner Sports network, which cost him the hefty sum in potential earnings, during a recent podcast interview. Explaining that his staff was the motivation behind the decision, he said:

“The No. 1 thing for me is my people from Turner get to keep their jobs for at least another year.”

Charles Barkley

Admitting that he was elated to get other offers from outside networks attempting to recruit him, he added:

“I want to thank all of those networks for reaching out to me…It was really humbling and cool, to be honest with you. Even though they were throwing crazy numbers, like d**n, but as long as I got my people safe at TNT man, I feel really good.”

In case you’re unfamiliar, Charles Barkley has had a long-time relationship with the TNT network, first joining the company in 2000 as an analyst on the award-winning series Inside the NBA. In 2022, the 61-year-old signed a 10-year deal with TNT Sports and was expected to spend several more years alongside his co-hosts Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson, and Kenny Smith.

However, the fate of many TNT analysts is currently up in the air, as the network recently lost its contract with the NBA following a 34-year partnership. As you may know, in a new 11-year deal with the league, ESPN’s parent network The Walt Disney Company, NBC, and Amazon Prime Video will have exclusive rights to broadcast games and associated content, starting with the 2025-2026 season.

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