“They don’t give sh*t” — Charles Barkley got real about NBA’s messy $77 billion streaming deal

The legendary basketball player and seasoned analyst Charles Barkley shared his deep frustration about the NBA's new media rights deal while on The Bill Simmons Podcast in early September 2025. He expressed that the NBA seems to be putting profits ahead of what’s convenient and affordable for regular fans.Speaking to host Bill Simmons, Barkley said, "I think the NBA's got a big problem. How are regular fans gonna like, okay, it's Tuesday, especially when they start putting games. Where do I go? Well, like, Cassin know sometimes the games gonna be on Peacock and like, it's not going to be on NBC. I think that's a huge dilemma for the NBA.” Host Bill said “they don't care. They got so much money. They're gonna wipe their tears with cash.” Then Barkley continued again “Bill, I'm so glad you said that. I think it's a big deal because they just took all the money from all three networks.”He later added “I don't think they give a sh*t about the fans and I think this is going to come back to bite them, to be honest with you. And then the thing is scary. This deal is for 11 years right so now, people playing all they want to for the next 11 years. They don't give a shit about the fans. They're like, y'all. If y'all find the games fine, just make sure to check."According to Charles Barkley, this is going to hit fans hard in the wallet. Take the Denver Nuggets, for example; if someone wants to follow just that team, they’ll need to pay $1,343 annually for subscriptions.Barkley's comments are rooted in the changing media scene of the NBA. The last media rights deal, made in 2014, was a nine-year pact valued at around $24 billion with Disney (which covers ABC and ESPN) and Warner Bros. Discovery (the parent company of TNT).This contract averaged around $2.7 billion annually and played a big role in the league's expansion, leading to player salaries that often go over $10 million each year. It concluded after the 2024-25 season, marking the finish of an era when fans could easily watch national games on cable channels such as ESPN and TNT.Also Read: Shaquille O’Neal surprises Pittsburgh wrestler Tamara Humphries with a 2025 Mitsubishi Outlander after her transportation strugglesBarkley's guest spot on the podcast expands on his previous critiques of the deal. Back in July 2024, during a celebrity golf tournament, he chatted with CNBC about how "greedy players and greedy owners" focus more on cash than on fans, pointing out that not everyone can pay for several streaming subscriptions.