HoopsHype.com Rumors

Many details must be worked out, but Smith said he has already been in touch with numerous players and the response has been excellent. And having the event benefit veterans would make it an instant success with sponsors. "I told them I'd do it, but I want to bring the charity aspect into it,'' Smith said while speaking at the SMU basketball tipoff gala. "If I know there's a long lockout, I want to do it on Veterans Day and give them money to the veterans. It's got to be not only for the fans, but also for the soldiers. "That's the only way it makes sense. You can't do it for a money grab. You have to do it for something that's really worthwhile.'' Dallas Morning News

Lockout, Kenny Smith 

Smith emphasized that players of past generations often had to get creative to get what they felt was owed to them. "When I was with the Rockets, they said, 'we don't want to pay you $2.1 million,' '' Smith said. "I said, 'OK, what do you want to pay me?' They were saying $1.7 million. I said, 'OK, pay me $2.1 if we win over 50 games.' We won over 50 games that year. "So it has to be incentive based. And if you hit certain numbers, why wouldn't you want to profit share. You're profit sharing zero right now. "So, three percent? If you're talking about a pie - cherry pie, my favorite - and you're telling me I get three percent less or three percent more, we'll figure it out and start eating the pie.'' Dallas Morning News

CBA, Lockout, Kenny Smith 

Shaquille O’Neal is joining TNT’s “Inside the NBA” show, teaming with Suns Ring of Honor member Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson. He was courted by ABC/ESPN as well since his retirement but picked TNT because he felt the environment would be fun. “It has also been my favorite show,” said O’Neal, who has kept a house in Atlanta, TNT’s home, for 15 years. “I’d love to be up there hanging out with Charles, Kenny and Ernie. I just thought that was the best fit for me. “It was a deal I couldn’t resist.” Arizona Republic

Shaquille O'Neal, Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

O’Neal said he knew he wanted to enter broadcasting immediately after retirement and is willing to criticize his peers, not that playing alongside them ever stopped him. “Some people give unfair criticism,” O’Neal said. “Some people give fair criticism. I have the ability and the backing to give fair criticism. The only time I have a problem with people giving criticism is when they haven’t walked that walk. I’ve walked many walks in my 19-year career. Any criticism I give should be fair.” Arizona Republic

Shaquille O'Neal, Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

If a delicate balance exists in the chemistry that makes TNT’s “Inside the NBA” a successful and amusing studio program, will a huge new ingredient named Shaquille O’Neal alter it? The camaraderie that binds Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson as a team is difficult to imitate — as ESPN has shown — so why try to change the chemical balance? The answer: because Shaq exists. O’Neal can be charming and funny, but whether he will equal Barkley’s outrageousness is unknown. O’Neal is also surprisingly soft-spoken for a man of his dimensions. Barkley’s voice matches his size. “We’re going to make it very fun,” O’Neal said on a conference call Thursday. “We’re going to make it more exciting for the fans to watch.” He said he religiously watched “Inside” as a player, which probably gave TNT an edge over ESPN’s bid, as did the fact that he owns a house near Atlanta, where TNT is based. New York Times

Shaquille O'Neal, Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

The Western Conference finals belong to ESPN. That means Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy courtside, with Stuart Scott, Michael Wilbon, Jon Barry and Magic Johnson in the studio. TNT owns the rights to the Heat-Bulls Eastern Conference finals, with Marv Albert, Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller courtside. Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley will be in the studio, with guest appearances from Kevin McHale and Chris Webber. Charlotte Observer

Steve Kerr, Kevin McHale, Mark Jackson, Media, Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson, Chris Webber, Jeff Van Gundy, Reggie Miller, Jon Barry, Kenny Smith 

Kenny Smith's new massive presentation to showcase his famous 'Pictures' hasn't exactly gone over a storm this postseason. The long walk to a giant screen is most criticized, with most of the moaning coming from in-house. From over his shoulder. From Charles Barkley. So why not give a little wink to the viewing audience to let them know that, yeah, you're not big fans of the practice yourself. Why not prank Kenny using a ghostly apparition, straight out of an eBaum's World video from 2004? Yahoo! Sports

Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

I know people were extremely excited to hear that you and Charles Barkley were going to be on the CBS telecast. (Sunday night) you were there with the five guys on set. How do you recreate the chemistry you have on TNT without Ernie Johnson there and just learning on the fly as opposed to being on TNT for 13 years now? Kenny Smith: The great thing about it is that it’s still basketball. We don’t have to change our thought process. I think fans will be interested if we have the same viewpoints as we do with NBA basketball; if we analyze college the same way we analyze the NBA. And that’s our job, to bring that to it. Ernie will be part of the early rounds for the first two weeks. So he’ll be part of that process as well and we’ll have a little bit more of a comfort zone doing it that way. But we’re excited about it more than anything. This is an opportunity to talk about the kids we would’ve been watching anyway. When the tournament was on we would’ve been out from 12 to 12, our TV would’ve been locked in on these networks. So this will be a fun opportunity. Lost Lettermen

Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

Now I know your partner Charles Barkley has already stirred things up with his Billy Packer comments. What’s your take on the Billy Packer -Charles Barley beef going on right now? Kenny Smith: Well I think Billy said something to the effect of, “How can they do college basketball?” But I was just surprised that Billy Packer was in my house and knew what I was watching (laughs). We’re excited about it. It’s obvious that you can do both if you do your homework. And our job, especially mine, is to comment factually what happens at the time. So when a team makes a last second shot, I’m going to tell you why they made it, should they have made it, what the defense should’ve done and why they should’ve done it. I could do that with a third grade basketball game if I’ve never seen the kids play. It’s all about understanding the moment, what Charles and I do and we live in that space and I live in that space all the time. What happens, why you did it and why you shouldn’t have done it. Lost Lettermen

Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith 

CBS and Turner will broadcast the games over four different networks: CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV, a cable channel usually devoted to crime shows. To cover that many games, the networks are dragging in some commentators not usually associated with the college game -- including Turner's NBA analysts Charles Barkley and Kenny "The Jet" Smith. Even they admit they are not up to date with the undergrads. "I'm not going to watch 100 college basketball teams play, that's bulls- -t," Barkley said yesterday. "I'll probably watch 30 or 40 teams play and the rest I'm going to have to get my college coach friends [to help]." New York Post

Media, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith