Charles Barkley revealed in 2022 that there was once a plan to have Kobe Bryant join the cast of Inside The NBA following the end of his NBA career. Barkley went as far as to say that Bryant had signed a preliminary contract with TNT as his career wound down. However, the deal ultimately fell through due to stipulations in the contract. According to Barkley, Braynt had issues with the requirements of doing promotional appearances as well as presenting the show.
Of course, the conversation is moot as Bryant tragically passed away in January 2020. However, the question as to whether Bryant would have worked on Inside The NBA has persisted ever since Barkley brought it up. After a recent retelling of the story, which Barkley originally told to Draymond Green. Barkley opened up about how he actually felt about how Kobe would have done on the show that he leads.
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Barkley's insights into Kobe's suitability on Inside The NBA came during an appearance on New Heights With Jason And Travis Kelce. "I don’t know if he was built to have fun,” he said. “He was a great person, I liked him, rest in peace. But like, he was a real serious guy. And the problem you have, if you’re gonna do our show, I don’t think people understand, we’re on from seven to two in the morning. Nobody wants to be damn serious from seven to two in the morning, ok?." Inside The NBA is known for its wild shenanigans and incredibly laid-back tone. In recent weeks, Barkley has attempted a Boston accent and had plenty of wild takes.
While Kobe was excellent in the broadcast booth after retiring in 2016, it's true that he is not remembered as a super jovial personality. Bryant loved the game of basketball too much to drop his facade, even for a show like Inside The NBA. Maybe it's just a nice what-if to think about in this case. Follow all the latest sports here at HotNewHipHop.
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