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One of the last question marks surrounding the frayed media relationship between TNT Sports and the NBA in the U.S. has been answered.
TNT and the NBA have “mutually decided to part ways” from their 17-year NBA TV partnership, according to an internal memo from network chairman and CEO Luis Silberwasser obtained by Front Office Sports.
“We made several proposals to continue to provide services and operate the NBA TV network and related digital assets. However, we were unable to agree on a path forward that recognized the value of our expertise, quality content, and operational excellence that our fans and partners have come to expect from TNT Sports. We will work closely with the NBA on a transition plan for the league to assume the responsibility of programming and operating NBA TV and NBA.com, which will be effective October 1,” Silberwasser wrote to TNT employees on Friday morning.
A source told FOS that MLB Network has had “preliminary discussions” about the possibility of taking over NBA TV production, similarly to how it has with NHL Network. An MLB Network spokesperson declined to comment.
An NBA source said that it was “categorically” false that the league has had discussions with MLB Network, and that the NBA will take production of NBA TV in-house beginning Oct. 1.
While the digital partnership between TNT and NBA TV is over, other parts of the relationship will continue. TNT will continue to serve as a digital content partner in other areas such as Bleacher Report and House of Highlights, added Silberwasser. It will also create NBA-related content for live games in international markets.
The news should come as a relief to many TNT staffers after months of uncertainty. The network negotiated with the NBA for months about the future of NBA TV. But the talks went nowhere. Without live NBA games after the 2024–25 season, TNT was losing its best and most compelling content.
The decision brings more closure to the long and winding journey between TNT, parent Warner Bros. Discovery, and the NBA over U.S. media rights.
When the NBA finalized 11-year rights deals worth $77 billion with Disney’s ABC/ESPN, NBC Sports, and Amazon Prime Video, it left TNT without rights to live NBA games in the U.S. market for the first time in 40 years. WBD sued the NBA to try to retain its rights. Eventually, the two sides settled, with TNT retaining a significant package of international games in certain regions.
To extract more value from Charles Barkley’s Inside the NBA studio show, Silberwasser licensed the rights to ESPN in exchange for a package of Big 12 college football and basketball games. But Barkley & Co. remain TNT employees. And the network retains full editorial control of the show.
