TNT goes KABOOM!

The crew goes back to the barracks, not the bunker. After some much deserved RnR, the fate of the TNT Inside the NBA broadcast comes into question, in the hands of commissioner Adam Silver.

After reading Saturday Night to Sunday Night by Dick Ebersol, deserving fame and credibility from his impact on NBC television including SNL and SNF, I have a newfound appreciation and acceptance of the elements involved in sports media contracts.

Currently, we have watched the PAC-12 disappear, because dawdling in the league with fortunate deals made elsewhere, universities were forced to LOSE the Conference of Champions. Thank you Bill Walton, the league won't be the same without you, because it wont be the same... RIP.

If I was going to give you a taste of NBA on TNT... I'd give you 'barbeque chicken'

Since 1989 we have seen bouts on the broadcast as the station supported full and forward analysis of basketball athletically, socially, and culturally. A perspective that is often lost in assessing the importance of sports and its influence.

My favorite DISS on the desk is that Charles Barkley didn't win a NBA Championship ring 😄

Anchor Analysis:

Shaq: The scariest pictures I have ever seen in my life, is of Shaquille O'Neil at the 2000 playoffs against my bolstered Blazers:

Shaquille O'Neal isn't the same as he was in SHAZZAM, a indie film where he played a genie. But at 7'1" 324 pounds... he's hard to miss, even though I wish he would tend to his more pressing duty, upholding the law (yes, Shaq is in volunteer law enforcement) not to mention 3 seconds in the key. I followed Shaq, reading his book and watching him and the prolific Penny Hardaway in Orlando. He joined the Lakers with the 'Black Mamba' Kobe Bryant, and no one left with nibbles. Instead the duo nabbed 3 NBA Championships. The gargantuan wasn't even afraid of music, where I find true trepidation that most find engrossing, but he put out flat tracks that added to his repertoire. After stops in Cleveland, Boston, and Miami in an effort to bring more rings, he landed on the desk of the TNT broadcast to lend his talents and perspective to a team that rivals the tube.

Chuck: Charles Barkley is known as the 'Round Mound of Rebound' all while he lists at 6'6". He performed with guts and perseverance that changed the game when he was on the court. Starting with the Sixers and ending in Phoenix he brought an element few had seen before, a tenacious competitor with fight. He often led the analysis of the game going off for minutes before fumbling his way back to another anchor. But his anecdotal understanding of the NBA can never be overlooks. While I often questioned if he even watched the game, his zeel and charisma carried the group to new heights. A highlight for many, the tone-setter brought his game to the world in the 1992 Olympics:

Kenny 'The Jet' Smith: Kenny brought a background from North Carolina and Dean Smith to the team of the Houston Rockets earning 2 Championship Rings. A great role player among Drexler and Hakeem 'The Dream' ;lkasdf;lkasjdf;lkjasd;lkfja (idk how to spell his last name, so Im not gonna try) brought a great core to defeat the New York Knicks and the Orlando Magic. Of the dynamic, I thought he brought valuable insight to the group in his run to the wall to provide analysis visually of what the team was constructing. Subtly, I would rather hear him mumble than stumble.

Ernie 'Bowtie' Johnson: Tying these nincompoops together was a challenge from the get-go, and letting them riff through every highlight added to the fixation and fascination that elevated the show and showed the true poise and conviction of herding the cats. The challenge was letting them be themselves while providing real understanding of the game... and it seemed that Ernie was the perfect catalyst in withdrawing informative perspective while encouraging the fun that made the show great. And if you notice, the characters on each side were consistently talking to Ernie, demonstrating his control of the broadcast.

NBA on TNT will hold the torch with some of the best, World Wide of Sports, Inside Edition hosted by Ahmad Rashad (Duck), Real Sports with Bryant Gumble, and my personal favorite... SportsCenter.

The team is slated for next year, but their show is going to be something to remember and cherish. They brought fun and atmosphere that pushed viewers on Tuesdays and Thursdays to tune in and see who wins the screen race. Charles would go on about obesity in San Antonio, and Shaq would shackle his true feelings into an insightful perspective. Jokes aside, you will never find a group more provocative in presenting sports than the TNT crew... adoration, admiration, and respect begins the conversation.

We have to deal with the loss of the most dynamic and eccentric group on television... and they have to deal with hair loss