Inside the NBA has been on ESPN for several months now and, so far, the beloved sports show’s format has remained relatively unchanged. What has been different, however, is the frequency by which the show airs, as it no longer drops on a weekly basis like it did on TNT. After the schedule was initially released, fans expressed their discontent over there being fewer broadcasts during the final months of 2025. Some viewers are still less than pleased and, meanwhile, co-host Shaquille O’Neal is revealing why he likes the change.
The latest season of Inside premiered on ESPN near the end of October 2025 and, between then and last December, only five broadcasts were scheduled. At present, the show is set to return in late January amid the 2026 TV schedule. It’s more than apparent that lately, fans haven’t been able to see Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaq together on air as much. Shaq, who previously sought to ease concerns, addressed the changes while speaking with Sports Illustrated, and he sees a silver lining to this change:
I actually like it. Because with a lot of competition, you got all these other guys doing it, and we haven’t really been on a lot. But as I’m looking at the schedule, when the playoffs start, you’re going to have the big dogs talking.
What seems to appeal to The Diesel here is the notion of Inside having the opportunity to distance itself amid a flooded sports media market. Shaq also believes that those absences will also prop up excitement for the remainder of the show’s season, which will see the team cover the postseason. And, this year, said coverage will also include the NBA Finals, which has been an exciting prospect. It sounds like the Los Angeles Lakers legend is definitely pumped, and he doubled down on his sentiments:
The fact that I’ve only worked two times last year and I haven’t even worked once this year, but I’m looking at my schedule and once March comes, you’re going to have the big dogs on and people will tune in. I remember when it was just us and ESPN, but now it’s this and it’s that and that. And everyone’s doing a great job, but when the playoffs start, you got to see the big dogs. You got to see the boys.
Fans are now seeing “the boys” on Disney’s flagship sports network at all due to TNT’s parent company (Warner Bros. Discovery) losing the broadcast rights to the NBA in 2024. After that, it seemed Inside the NBA would be canceled, and Charles Barkley was particularly vocal about how displeased he was with his employers’ handling of the matter. Eventually, WBD inked a multi-year licensing agreement with ESPN to keep Inside on the air, beginning with the 2025-2026 TV season.
Viewers may also be pleased to hear that Inside’s broadcast schedule could change moving forward. ESPN head honcho Burke Magnus recently explained that the main goal for this season was simply to acquire the show and that the light first half of the schedule was due to a contractual provision from Turner Broadcasting. That aside, Magnus expressed confidence that after this inaugural season, he and his colleagues can look into adding more regularity for the show.
In the interim though, fans can at least look forward to a far greater number of Inside the NBA episodes as the postseason approaches. Shaq’s recent comments give me the impression that he’ll be revved up and ready to go when it’s time to get in front of the cameras again. The show returns to ESPN on January 24.
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