Charles Barkley to leave NBA on TNT when contract ends

On Monday night the cast of the NBA on TNT spoke to fans at Time Warner Center about various topics. Charles Barkley mentioned that he is likely to leave the cast of Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Shaquille O'Neal and himself once his contract ends in two years time.

Per Sean Deveney of Sporting News:

“I love my job, I love the people I work with,” Barkley said. “My big decision is, I’ve got two years left on my deal. That’ll be 17 years. That’s a long time to do a job. I would rather leave too early than stay too long. And 17 years is a long time. I told Ernie when I took the job, I was only going to be here four years. Now 15 years later, I’m still here. I’m leaning heavily toward it, toward finishing my two years and leaving on a good note.”

So there you have it, Barkley is leaving after his contract is over in two years... or maybe not. Keep in mind that this was an on the spot question and that a lot can change in two years. Seems as though we'll just have to wait two years until the contract is up to know for sure.

If he were to leave however, it would be, in the words of the Chuckster himself: turrible.

Although not very informative as far as basketball goes you can't deny that the NBA on TNT cast is one of the most entertaining on TV and is one of the joys of the NBA season.

Here's a reminder of how great Barkley and the rest of the crew are:



Photo credit: Rob Schumacher, Arizona Republic

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