A familiar face will no longer be part of NBA coverage after this season.
Ernie Johnson announced on Wednesday, Oct. 28 that the 2026-27 campaign will be his last with "Inside the NBA." The longtime analyst shared the news on social media earlier in the day and then, that night's edition of the show opened with just him standing in the studio relaying the message for those who hadn't seen his video.
"Allow me a couple of minutes to fill you in. You know I've been hosting this show, 'Inside the NBA' for a long time. This is my 37th year," Johnson said. "And I've long described it as a 'get to' job. I'm still amazed that I get to do this for a living. As the years have gone by, I turned 70 this past summer, folks have asked me, 'So how long you gonna
keep on doing "Inside?"' and the short answer is this will be my last season. It's totally my decision. It's just time."
He again told fans about the heart issues that he's been facing and thanked his "Inside the NBA" co-hosts Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
Once Johnson's monologue ended, the program moved to the desk, where he was sitting with his co-hosts and Smith was applauding.
The co-hosts went down the line and offered their appreciation to the six-time Sports Emmy Award winner with Barkley, who was sitting at the far right, going first. He took a moment to scrunch his face up and stared ahead, holding back tears.
"That was tough. We knew the day was coming, it's still tough," he said. "... It's been an amazing journey. You've been our leader, unquestionable leader. ... The question I'm asked the most is, 'Is Ernie Johnson as good a person as he seem?' And I say, 'Man, he's better than that.'"
The Hall of Famer recalled a story from his mentor, MLB veteran Joe Morgan about when he met Jackie Robinson and how to express appreciation to those who seem beyond words.
Morgan's dad said, "'Just tell him, thank you because a thank you goes a long way.' And (Morgan) said he bumped into Jackie Robinson like 20 years later, 'You're the kid who said thank you to me.' All I can say, Ernie, is thank you."
The Inside The NBA crew reacts to Ernie Johnson announcing this will be his last season on the show ❤️ pic.twitter.com/kLF2foSLgl
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 28, 2026
Smith, a two-time NBA champion, was next up and reflected on joining "Inside the NBA" nearly three decades ago. He was part of the show before the other two co-hosts came on board and, on his second day on the desk, former Georgetown standout Michael Jackson asked him how he felt being on television.
"It feels the same way when I walked into the Rocket locker room for the first time," he recalled, with Jackson asking, "'What do you mean by that?' I said, 'I feel like I can win a championship.'"
He directed his thoughts toward Johnson, "Your energy made me feel that way and I didn't even know what an Emmy was at that time and I didn't know what that importance of those things were. And here we are as a group 40 to 50 Emmys deep in all different categories and it literally when I walked in the building, I said, 'This is a championship' and that was because of you, brother."
O'Neal was the last co-host to give Johnson his flowers. He said that, growing up as a basketball fan, Johnson was one of only three commentators he would listen to, along with Bill Raftery and Dick Vitale.
The four-time NBA champion explained how having Johnson interview him and his father early in his career was impactful.
"It was a big day for me, but it was a big day for him because you were well-respected in what you do," he said. "You never pass judgement. You're good on your facts. You're delightful to watch. You speak positive about everyone. So when you came to my house that day, it did something for me."
He reflected on his own process joining the show and how Johnson was the glue.
"I only came here because you were here," he said. "You are the controller of this thing people call a circus. It's the best circus in town, but without you, it's going to be very, very difficult."
Take a listen to Ernie Johnson speaking on stepping away from Inside the NBA after 37 years ❤️ pic.twitter.com/JTKIBHNRkm
— ESPN (@espn) October 28, 2026
O'Neal then echoed Barkley's sentiment with a dash of humor and hopefulness.
"Chuck made a great point, all we can say is thank you and we appreciate you," he said. "We're going to miss you and we'll see you around, but thanks for the great run. I never thought this day would happen. I didn't even know you were 70. It makes sense now.
"I heard the news today like everyone else and everybody, 'What's going to happen next?' We're not too worried about what's going to happen next. What's happening now is that we're still here. We're going to have a great year."
The NBA is in its second week of the season and "Inside the NBA" will be a part of select game nights through the end of the regular season in April. The program moved to ESPN from TNT when the league's media rights deal with Turner Sports expired
Johnson was visibly moved by everyone's words.
"I've said it before, I grew up with two older sisters, closest I'll ever come to having brothers," he said.
When the producers showed social media posts from Ben Stiller, Tracy Wolfson and Chuck D saluting Johnson, he said "Thank you, it means the world. Good for my soul."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Charles Barkley tears up with 'Inside the NBA' co-hosts paying tribute to Ernie Johnson
