Charles Barkley publicly criticized ESPN insider Shams Charania for prematurely revealing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as the NBA MVP winner, undermining Amazon Prime Video’s scheduled exclusive announcement.
During an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina, the Hall of Famer expressed his disapproval, noting that Amazon had committed $2.5 billion annually for 11 years in its media rights deal. Barkley argued the league should protect such high-value exclusives and stated the NBA should feel embarrassed by the early leak.
“I like him a lot, but I didn’t like that leaking,” Barkley said of Charania. “(Amazon) paid $2.5 billion for the next 11 years. I think they deserved an exclusive. I think the NBA should be embarrassed that that got out.
“You know, you can’t charge these networks that much money and then don’t give them some exclusives on some things. I mean, I just think that’s unfair.”
Charania has defended himself in the face of criticism.
Gilgeous-Alexander secured his second consecutive MVP award, earning 83 first-place votes from a panel of 100 media members. The official reveal had been planned for Amazon’s studio show ahead of a playoff broadcast.
Barkley, whose “Inside the NBA” program now airs on ESPN, emphasized fairness in broadcasting partnerships after the league’s major media rights agreements.
The incident has sparked broader discussion about balancing timely reporting with contractual obligations to media partners.
