The thing about effortless chemistry on television, of course, is that it’s not often effortless at all. In most cases, a relationship — ideally, a friendship — has to be built away from the camera in order for a genuine connection among personalities to convey through the lens.
No conventional sports studio show has ever done this better than TNT’s “Inside the NBA.’’ You don’t have to watch for long to just know that Shaq, Chuck, Kenny, and Ernie are the same way to each other off camera as they are when the red light is on, though their language is presumably quite a bit more colorful behind the scenes.