(CNN) 鈥� Charles Barkley,聽the聽basketball聽Hall of Famer whose second career as a blunt, no-BS聽commentator on TNT鈥檚 鈥淚nside the NBA鈥� may have eclipsed the heights he reached as聽a superstar聽player, announced Friday that next year will be his last on TV.
鈥淚 ain鈥檛 going nowhere other than TNT. But I have made the decision that no matter what happens, next year is going to be my last year on television,鈥� Barkley said on NBATV, after the over the Boston Celtics. 鈥淎nd I just want to say thank you to my NBA family. You guys have been great to me. My heart is full with joy and gratitude.鈥�
Barkley鈥檚 exit coincides with Warner Bros. Discovery鈥檚 (WBD) with the NBA expiring after next season. WBD, CNN鈥檚 parent company, could renew its deal, but NBC and Amazon have reportedly outbid WBD, according to the聽.
A new agreement on which networks or platforms might get NBA rights, including a separate package that will likely continue at ESPN, will likely be announced in the coming weeks.
鈥淚 hope the NBA stays with TNT, but for me personally, I wanted you guys to hear it from me,鈥� Barkley continued. 鈥淚 wanted to tell my NBATV and TNT family that I鈥檓 not going to another network, but I鈥檓 going to pass the baton to either Jamal Crawford or Vince Carter or you Steve (Smith).鈥�
鈥淏ut next year, I鈥檓 going to just retire after 25 years, and I just wanted to say thank you. And I wanted y鈥檃ll to hear it from me first.鈥�
Following a Hall of Fame career as a player, Barkley joined as an analyst on TNT鈥檚 award-winning studio show 鈥淚nside the NBA,鈥� in 2000.
鈥淐harles is a Hall of Famer and broadcasting icon who is and will always be a beloved member of the TNT Sports family,鈥� said a TNT Sports spokesperson in a statement to CNN.聽鈥淲e鈥檙e looking forward to another fantastic NBA on TNT season and further discussion of our future plans with him.鈥�
Barkley won two Olympic gold medals, made 11 All-Star teams, won the MVP award in 1993 and was named to the NBA鈥檚 50th聽and 75th聽anniversary team. He was among the greatest players never to win a championship, a failure that he said haunted him throughout his career.
But his post-career transition to become one of the most beloved and respected sports broadcasters in a generation eventually overshadowed his time on-the-court.
It was an unlikely transformation. With a thick Alabama accent and a tendency to shoot from the hip, Barkley is not your typical sports analyst. But his free-wheeling, don鈥檛-care attitude has made him must-watch TV and a viral sensation, even before social media.
In his nearly two-and-a-half decades with the network, Barkley has been awarded聽聽and has been inducted into the聽.
Barkley had expressing an interest in becoming the governor of Alabama. But he has said he was uninspired by the major political forces in the United States.
鈥淚 consider myself an Independent because I hate the words Republican, Democratic, Conservative and Liberal,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think you can be one of those things, but you don鈥檛 think that way on every subject.
鈥淚 really thought hard about running for governor but then I realized, like, I don鈥檛 think either one of these parties are really concerned about people and that鈥檚 what America is: people.鈥�
While the future of the NBA on TNT remains uncertain, WBD Tuesday a 10-year deal to become the new US home for the French Open tennis tournament beginning in 2025.
Under the 鈥渘ew expansive deal,鈥� all roughly 900 matches will air live on the streaming platform Max, with featured matches on TNT and TBS and a new whip-around show on truTV. 聽already has an existing relationship with Roland Garros since it began broadcasting the tennis tournament across Europe on Eurosport since 1989.
The-CNN-Wire
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