Ernie Johnson missed Inside the NBA on Thursday after death of his sister

Ernie Johnson missed his duties as ‘Inside the NBA’ host Thursday night after his sister died of cancer.

The announcement was made on-air on Thursday’s show, with friends and analysts Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith leading the condolences alongside fill-in host Adam Lefkoe.

“Tonight we’re going to pause for a moment away from basketball and send our deepest condolences to a friend and mentor, Ernie Johnson,” Lefkoe said.

‘Yesterday, Ernie’s beloved sister Christine Johnson passed away after a brave battle with cancer. She was 72 years old.

‘Ernie, we’re thinking about you. We are praying for you and your wonderful family. It’s the reason I’m here now, but Ernie is the family man.

Barkley said: ‘He’s the leader of the family. We are a team around here. I felt the same when Kenny’s mom passed away, I felt the same when Shaq’s sister passed away.

‘Ernie is the leader of our family and our family leader is going through a painful time. Man, we love you, we miss you and you stay home and take care of your family.

O’Neal added: “We definitely feel your pain. I definitely feel your pain.

‘We are brothers. We feel the pain. When I got the text it brought a tear to my eye…we are definitely hurting for you Ernie. We love you. Take your time to come back. We miss you.’

Smith then said: ‘When I received the information, I started thinking about the birth of his grandchildren, about all the positive things I’ve seen happy in his family too.

‘You are with someone for more than two and a half decades, you can see weddings, see births, see grandchildren being born and all that in the same sphere.

“You have to accept some of the bad, but there has been a lot of good.”