When news broke that the NBA was officially leaving TNT Sports for Prime Video in 2025 – even if the exact details of the situation have become somewhat murky – fans of professional wrestling were left with one major question: what does this mean for AEW?
Would the promotion suddenly become more of a priority for Warner Brothers Discovery now that they'd lost their biggest cash cow? Or would they instead look to re-evaluate their live sports and entertainment initiatives, with Tony Khan having to look elsewhere to find a home for his promotion?
Discussing how the NBA rights negotiations could impact AEW on Wrestling Observer Radio, albeit before NBA PR made things official, Dave Meltzer noted that TNT keeping the association would have strained WBD's overall budget and, as a result, could have hurt their ability to meet the number TK was looking for.
“The NBA will pay them money to go away because they want them on Amazon. They want it streaming, Amazon is the strongest streaming service than Max,” Dave Meltzer shared. “WBD actually wants it on TNT but will put it on Max if they can keep it on TNT, so that's kind of where it stands. If they actually have to pay the $1.9 billion a year and the AEW deal is not pretty much signed, it's probably not a good thing for AEW, because that's a lot of money.”
Assuming the NBA does, in fact, decide to leave WBD and things don't get drawn out into court cases or legal arbitration over contractual matching rights, it would appear that this newfound hole in TNT's broadcasting schedule could be a benefit for AEW, with the promotion not only sticking around on TBS but potentially even expanding its offerings to help fill in some prime time spots.
If Warner Brothers Discovery really leans into the promotion and pushes it hard to get more eyes on its new programming block, who knows, maybe this will be the financial and PR effort needed to really set things up for another wrestling war the likes of which fans haven't enjoyed Sting was propelling himself down from the ceiling of arenas around the country.
Tony Khan still believes AEW has a home at Warner Brothers Discovery
Speaking with Tim & Eli on Battleground about this very topic, once again slightly before the news broke about the NBA potentially leaving TNT, Khan discussed AEW's current negotiations with Warner Brothers Discovery during their exclusive rights window and what it could mean for the future.
While TK didn't break any news on the show, he did hold strong to the line that WBD has been a great partner for the promotion, and he believes that they could be the home of Dynamite, Collision, and Rampage well into the future.
“It's such an exciting time for AEW. We're in great conversations with our partners at Warn brothers Discovery. It's a real blessing to me and I think everyone in AEW that we're able to put wrestling on TBS and TNT every week. Wrestling on TBS and TNT was a big part of our childhoods. There was no wrestling on TNT for about 18 years and no wrestling on TBS for over 20 years. It meant a lot to bring that back, in particular on TBS, that tradition goes back over 50 years,” Tony Khan told Battleground via Fightful.
“I love it here. We're having great talks. It means the world to be able to do this. We're in very deep exciting conversations. There is a lot to figure out. We have these great shows with AEW Dynamite, Rampage, and Collision. Our prime time shows, both coming on at 8, we've been doing great, great ratings with our flagship shows. It's a really exciting time. This past week, both shows did their biggest numbers in months. It's an exciting time for us to hit new highs. The conversations are awesome right now. There is a lot to figure out with the AEW TV shows, our pay-per-view content, our streaming library, and all of these things. It's a lot of very complex conversations, but they've been great. We're having great talks with Warner Brothers Discovery now, and it's a great partnership, and we're very fortunate to be here. It's a great place for wrestling.”
Is Meltzer on the money that losing the NBA could open up a better opportunity for AEW, which still produces great television numbers despite not being on the association's level? Sure thing, Warner Brothers Discovery will need programing more than ever if they lose the NBA and retaining five hours of weekly AEW programming, plus additional shows and even Max-produced Pay-Per-Views could be a great backup plan. If the two sides can agree on a number, a long-term union could be in place heading into the future.
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