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Charles Barkley has revealed that the late Kobe Bryant was offered a role as an analyst on Inside the NBA show on TNT. The 59-year-old stated that the five time NBA champion had signed the contract but later declined to feature on the show to focus on other ventures.
After winning five NBA championships, Kobe Bryant bid adieu to the game in 2016. However, his love for basketball was such that even after retirement, he wanted to continue staying close to the game. The 18-time All-Star would have been a great fit with the crew as he is one of the best basketball minds the game has ever seen.
In an appearance on the Draymond Green show, Barkley got candid about his life and spoke about his retirement plans and all that goes into putting up a great show for Inside the NBA. The former NBA legend also revealed about Kobe signing for Turner Sports. He said:
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"I'm probably getting into trouble for telling you this, but we actually hired Kobe Bryant at Turner. But he didnt want to do all the other bullshit and I'm probably getting into trouble for saying this, but it's one of the like little things that we keep in the car, but he actually signed with us."
Kobe Bryant had a stacked resume and like all the analysts on the show, he was an NBA legend. However, he was a master of different crafts and had a lot of other ventures to take care of.
As per Barkley, the Mamba was not keen on doing promotional work for the show, because of which the deal eventually fell off.
"But then we started telling like you know I had to do a bunch of radio shows, like hey I go on this radio show on Monday, some hey from Thursday night TNT, same thing on Tuesday, same thing on Wednesday, same thing on Thursday, he like,' yeah I dont want to do all of that stuff."
Kobe Bryant would have been a great fit with the other members of the crew
Kobe Bryant was known to be a student of the game. He had an immense basketball IQ and would have been a perfect fit as a TV analyst.
If Bryant had decided to take up the analyst role on Inside the NBA, he would have teamed up with his former teammate Shaquille O'Neal. It would have been very interesting to see how the two would have functioned together, considering the unique bond they shared.
Often the crew is seen being very critical of players and teams and this would not be a problem for Kobe Bryant. The decision to overturn the contract with Turner Sports may have helped the Mamba focus a lot more on his family and his daughter Gianna Bryant's growth as a basketball player.
Despite not taking up the role on TV, Bryant managed to stay close to the game with the help of his daughter. His death was certainly a huge loss to the entire sports fraternity. However, his legacy will forever live in the hearts of everyone who loves sports and the game of basketball..
