puis dans la liste qui s’affiche, cliquez sur AdBlock
Par Pierre-Andréa Fraile | Journaliste sportif
Just a few months after completing the sale of the Hornets, Michael Jordan is set to re-enter the NBA landscape as a consultant for NBC. His future colleague and former rival Charles Barkley reacted coolly to this news.
According to several reputable insiders, this summer could prove to be a busy one on the NBA transfer market. But there will also be some major moves on the media front. After renegotiating its broadcasting contracts, the league will now be handled by new major players. This explains the move of the famous Inside The NBA show to ESPN, much to Charles Barkley’s dismay.
Charles Barkley dubious about Michael Jordan’s NBA comeback
While Barkley is sad to have to leave TNT after decades of collaboration with the network, he is nonetheless intrigued by the changing media landscape in the NBA. Indeed, he explains on The Dan Patrick Show:
Charles Barkley: The next few years are going to be interesting because the media are spending so much money right now. That’s why they have to do everything in their power to attract fans.
Whether it’s NBC, Amazon or ESPN… Annual broadcasting rights used to cost $1.2 million, but now they’ve jumped to $2.5 million. As a result, we have to make these investments profitable and do everything we can to win over the fans. That’s why I think it’s going to be fascinating to see how this all plays out in the future.
In order to garner high ratings, every media outlet tries to put together the best possible cast of analysts. And so far, NBC has made the biggest coup in this respect, signing a deal with… Michael Jordan. However, the role he will play on the network remains rather vague, even in the eyes of his former rival on the league’s floors:
Charles Barkley: That’s an excellent question. I donn’t know. I don’t see Michael being on television a lot. I find it hard to imagine, to be honest with you. I think it’s a very good thing that he’s back in the NBA landscape, knowing that he’s the greatest player in history in my eyes. I have no idea why he’s coming back, but he’s welcome.
So, despite his influence and repertoire in the business, Sir Charles doesn’t seem to know any more about Jordan’s comeback than the average person. But that doesn’t mean he’s any less delighted about it, and neither is his compatriot Shaquille O’Neal. Already vocal on the subject, Diesel was keen to make a point of warning players about any advice MJ might give them.
