‘He’s frustrated’ – Future of Inside the NBA thrown into major doubt over unknown Shaq detail as fans all call for same thing

NBA fans got some welcome news this week - Inside the NBA had been saved.

According to reports, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) -- TNT's parent company -- and Disney reached an agreement to license the beloved basketball show to Disney for broadcast on ESPN and ABC from next season.

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The news means Turner Sports will continue to produce Inside the NBA but license the show out to ESPN, which will air it going forward.

Fans initially rejoiced, but it isn't clear the show, which involves popular quartet Shaquille O'Neal, Barkley, Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith, will stay intact as currently constructed.

According to Jimmy Traina, Shaq currently isn’t under contract with WBD past the 2024-25 NBA season, meaning his future on the show beyond this season is still very much up in the air.

“O’Neal has a slightly different deal than his three castmates because they do other things for WBD, including the NCAA tournament," wrote Traina.

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"Shaq’s deal is strictly for the NBA and it’s up in about eight months.

"While sources say Shaq wants to remain on the show, he’s frustrated that there has been congratulations and press releases hyping that Inside the NBA is remaining the same while he is currently not under contract to be with the company next season.”

As Traina noted, Ernie, Kenny, and Charles all do other things for Turner, so their deals are different from Shaq’s, who exclusively does NBA work for the network.

According to reports, Shaq receives a reported $10 million per year in salary for his work on Inside the NBA, a studio show which has won 19 Sports Emmy Awards.

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While it's reported that O’Neal wants to remain with Inside the NBA, giants like NBC and Amazon could target 'The Big Aristotle' in his upcoming free agency.

Fans caught wind of the potential stumbling block and called for WBD to give Shaq a contract so he can stay on Inside the NBA beyond next year.

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"Give this man a Contract NOW", posted one fan.

"Inside the NBA would not be the same without Shaq man give him a contract extension," added another.

"Give him a contact ASAP," a third wrote.

"Pay him now don’t ruin the show," a fourth replied.

The NBA and ESPN re-negotiated its TV deal earlier this year while the league welcomed NBC and Amazon Prime Video as new rights-holders as part of an 11-year, $77 billion agreement.

The last contract NBC held expired in 2002, when the NBA then decided to move forward with ESPN and TNT.

The Walt Disney Company will continue to show the league with 80 regular-season games across ESPN and ABC. It will also air around 18 playoff games and remain the home of the NBA Finals.

NBC will show up to 100 games per season across it's channels and Peacock streaming service. It will also be the home of All-Star weekend, 28 playoff series, and share Conference Finals Series duties with Amazon Prime Video.

Prime will show 66 NBA regular-season game and is the home of the latter stages of the NBA Cup and the Play-In Tournament.