The reboot of Inside the NBA on ESPN is still almost a year away, but people have been speculating for weeks how the show might change after departing its longtime TNT Sports home.
Although TNT lost its NBA broadcast rights in the league’s new TV package that begins with the 2025-26 season, the award-winning show will continue, produced by Warner Bros. Discovery and airing on ESPN and ABC.
The show’s core of host Ernie Johnson and analysts Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith will presumably remain intact. But former ESPN president John Skipper said Friday he believes they’ll be joined “at some point” by Stephen A. Smith.
Of course, the moment ESPN obtained rights to air the show last month, speculation began Smith might become part of the mix. ESPN content president Burke Magnus recently dispelled that notion. He recently told Sports Illustrated‘s Jimmy Traina that ESPN had “no plans” to add Smith to the show, adding, “We don’t want to change it. We don’t want to interject new talent into it. We don’t want to really do anything to it.”
Skipper, who served five years as ESPN president before resigning in late 2017 under bizarre circumstances, believes the network will introduce its biggest star to the show.
Skipper explained his thoughts on Pablo Torre Finds Out. Podcast co-host David Samson pointed out Inside the NBA will require more studio talent beginning next season.
“They’ve got one small issue with Inside the NBA … it’s not going to be Shaq and Barkley and Kenny Smith for every one of ESPN’s games,” Samson said. “And so they are going to need what will end up being a … ‘B’ level team studio show to do pre- and postgame.”
“They certainly will not want to call it that,” Skipper deadpanned. “They probably have to account for my friend Stephen A. Smith, who really cares about the NBA, and is not going to want to just be in the shadow of these other guys. I think you’ll see him on Inside the NBA at some point.”
Samson, Torre, and Skipper all agreed such a move makes financial sense, given the new contract Smith is negotiating with ESPN.
“The only way to pay for the number for Stephen A. Smith is you have to it spread across different cost centers within a company like Disney,” Samson said.
“I will actually hazard a guess that all of the salary is being paid by ESPN, and that Stephen A. has the ambitions to be doing other things he wants to do,” Skipper said.
Skipper is merely saying what many other industry insiders are thinking and will continue thinking, despite Magnus’ recent comments on the matter. There’s rampant speculation Smith’s new contract could top $100 million, setting a record for a media personality.
[Pablo Torre Finds Out]