Ernie Johnson Wants Inside the NBA to Continue After His Exit

“I don’t want to be blamed for ending Inside the NBA,” Ernie Johnson told Matt Iseman on Front Office Sports Tonight.

Johnson’s October 30 interview addressed the future of the program after his planned departure from its hosting chair at the end of the 2026–27 season. He said he hoped the show would continue and pointed to the availability of other experienced studio hosts. His announcement concerns his own role, rather than an announced cancellation of the program.

Front Office Sports reported, citing sources, that ESPN intends to continue Inside the NBA if Johnson, Charles Barkley or both leave. That reporting does not name a confirmed successor. Johnson also declined to settle Barkley’s plans, saying their conversations about the future did not give him the final word on his colleague’s decision.

The show’s production and television distribution are handled by different companies. The licensing agreement that moved Inside the NBA onto ESPN and ABC beginning in 2025–26 kept production with TNT Sports in Atlanta. Front Office Sports reported when the agreement was reached that TNT retained editorial control and that the four regular panelists remained TNT employees.

ESPN’s October 1 schedule announcement confirms that TNT Sports continues to produce the program from Atlanta this season. Johnson hosts alongside Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith, providing coverage before games, at halftime and after the final buzzer. ESPN and ABC have scheduled 25 regular-season appearances for the show.

The announced slate includes weekly coverage during the season’s first four weeks, Christmas Day and dates throughout January before the regular run of Saturday Primetime games on ABC. The schedule also reaches the final day of the regular season, April 11, 2027.

For viewers looking for the next editions, ESPN lists November 4 and November 11, both alongside its NBA doubleheaders. The network says the playoff schedule will be announced later in the season, including plans for the conference finals and NBA Finals.

Johnson’s preference for a continuation was clear: “I would hope that they could continue the show in some form.”

Read Johnson’s announcement about his final season hosting Inside the NBA.