Inside the NBA is widely considered the best sports studio show of all time, but longtime cohost Kenny Smith believes its influence extends much further.
In an interview on The Mark Jackson Show released Thursday, Smith explained why he believes the format and vibe of Inside the NBA also laid the foundation for the athlete-driven sports content that dominates online today.
“I believe … we created the landscape of what sports media is today,” Smith said. “People didn’t do the things that they do today before we did them. They didn’t joke, they didn’t laugh. You get 15 seconds, then Kenny’s 15 seconds, no. We talk, we interact.”
Smith saw himself, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal open network executives’ eyes to the potential of a looser, more personality-driven sports show over the years on TNT.
Whether it was the tone of the discussion, longer segments, the way the hosts dressed, or hosts skipping out on production meetings, Smith said the industry changed once Inside the NBA succeeded while being outside the box.
That translates to the podcast format today, where media stars such as Shannon Sharpe and Pat McAfee bring in millions of viewers in a laid-back setting.
“We created the environment, I even think, for podcasts,” Smith added. “Because people wanted more of that. They wanted to hear more of what these players were creating and saying. We had a segment, a ‘Players’ Court,’ where everyone sat around and told stories, and people were like, ‘oh that would be great to hear every day.'”
It’s not an exaggeration to say sports media would look dramatically different without Inside the NBA. Besides the many classic moments and the way Barkley and O’Neal became ambassadors for the league, you can add athlete-hosted podcasts to the list of innovations that rippled out from the TNT basketball show.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.