- It has been a busy period for ESPN, who re-signed various personalities but lost people like Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe.
- There is more movement on ESPN as they announced “Around the Horn” would be ending in 2025 after 23 seasons.
- However, they also announced that “Inside the NBA” would be joining ESPN, with TNT still producing the show from Atlanta.
ESPN has been busy these last few months, as they have seen various personalities leave, such as basketball insider Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe, arguably the best writer in basketball. Meanwhile, Shams Charania has taken his spot as the heir apparent to “Woj”.
This week, ESPN has announced more news as longtime program “Around the Horn” is ending after a 23-year-old run. However, “Inside the NBA” will be joining the ESPN lineup, with TNT still involved.
“Around the Horn” Ends After 23 Years on the Air
The New York Post reported on Wednesday that “Around the Horn” would end in the summer of 2025, concluding after a 23-year stint.
“Around the Horn” first aired in November 2002, and it was originally hosted by Max Kellerman, who left in January 2004 for Fox Sports. Kellerman was replaced by Tony Reali, known as “Stat Boy” on “Pardon the Interruption”. Reali would fact-check hosts Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser at the end of each show, which made him perfect for “Around the Horn”, which aired before “PTI” at 5:00 PM ET.
Those two shows are still airing in the same block, and there hasn’t been a reason for why the show is being canceled. But “Around the Horn” is still appointment viewing as Reali scores arguments from a rotating cast of sports personalities, who are usually part of ESPN. Woody Paige of The Gazette has been on the show since its inception, and has both won and lost the most times in the history of “Around the Horn”.
The show also took off after Reali started hosting. He obviously knows his way around the sports world but would allow for conversations surrounding politics. Reali was also open about his battles with anxiety and other issues. It hasn’t been revealed if Reali would be staying with ESPN, but they would be smart to hold on to him.
“Inside the NBA” to Air on ESPN, Produced by TNT
But it wasn’t all bad news this week for ESPN, as “Inside the NBA” will air there, as well as on ABC, starting in the 2025-26 season.
It has been a rocky process, as TNT was originally shut out of the NBA’s new media deal. In July, TNT offered to match Amazon’s bid, but was rejected. That left the status of “Inside the NBA” up in the air. The show is beloved among basketball fans. Those on the East Coast will stay up very late to watch Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal analyze the game, but more importantly, banter among themselves.
As part of the agreement, TNT is still producing the show from Atlanta, where it has been since it started during the 1989-90 NBA season. Johnson was reportedly adamant that he would not leave TNT, and the rest of the cast seemed to follow. Barkley even threatened to retire this summer.
But the whole crew is back, especially the behind-the-scenes crew, which is what Johnson cared about most. Everyone on the set contributes to the greatness that is “Inside the NBA”, which has won 19 Sports Emmys. It will be interesting to see if the show starts to incorporate betting picks, such as NBA player props. But it seems like everything is going to stay the same for “Inside the NBA”.
