The NBA playoffs are just around the corner. But behind the scenes, an equally competitive, high-stakes contest is brewing, one that could redefine how we watch basketball for years to come. Currently, Walt Disney Co., home of ABC and ESPN, and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., owner of TNT, are in an exclusive negotiating window to renew their media rights with the NBA, set to expire in the upcoming summer. Joining the two incumbents in the bid will be Amazon, Apple, Comcast through NBCUniversal, Google through YouTubeTV, and Netflix. With the technology giants now joining the competition, the NBA’s impending media rights deal has employees at ESPN and TNT on pins and needles.

Charles Barkley addressed this issue in a recent episode of CNN’s King Charles, expressing, “There’s a lot of nervousness at TNT and ESPN. We’re your partners in NBA. We know that the bidding’s coming up and Amazon, Apple and NBC are gonna make a play.” Hopefully, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s response gave the TNT host some peace of mind.

According to Silver, his main objective with the new deal is to make the games as accessible as possible for the fans, something TNT and ESPN have been doing wonderfully over the last nine years.“You know, frankly, when I’m sitting down to talk about television media, I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t think of the fans first. I mean, there are consumers. If we don’t find a way to present our game on networks where people can find and present in a place where they produce it the way you and your colleagues do at TNT, you know, and great job the ESPN does, people aren’t going to watch it,” said Silver.

This is a developing story…