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ESPN Won’t Add Top NBA Analyst to Main Booth Before Season, Sources Say

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By: Mike

Don’t Expect ESPN to Add a Lead NBA Analyst to Its No. 1 Booth Before Season Starts
© Red94 – ESPN Won’t Add Top NBA Analyst to Main Booth Before Season, Sources Say

1. The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand recently appeared on a new episode of SI Media With Jimmy Traina to cover the latest developments in the sports media landscape.

As the NBA season approaches, I questioned Marchand about ESPN’s decisions regarding their primary NBA commentary team. Despite the surprising dismissal of Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson in June 2023, ESPN has introduced Doc Rivers and Doris Burke to join Mike Breen.

Rivers departed mid-season to return to coaching, leading to JJ Redick’s promotion. Redick then left to coach the Lakers during the offseason.

So, what’s the current situation with ESPN’s main NBA broadcast team? Marchand believes things will remain the same for the time being.

“They seem to be planning to start the season with Breen and Doris as the primary duo,” Marchand shared on the podcast, “and they’re likely looking to add a third commentator.”

Marchand noted that TNT Sports’ Grant Hill, experienced in both NBA and college basketball, is a top external candidate. “He’s highly regarded,” Marchand remarked. “Though he’s under contract, which complicates things.”

“Internally, Richard Jefferson stands out as a potential third member for the lead team,” he continued. “Tim Legler was also considered, and Jay Bilas was discussed for some time. He might cover some NBA games this season, but likely won’t join the top team. We may see new faces emerge unexpectedly.”

We also discussed other topics, including ESPN’s interest in Shams Charania, Jeff Passan, and Chris Haynes as potential successors to Adrian Wojnarowski as the network’s premier NBA insider; Tom Brady’s performance as an analyst; the implications of Cris Collinsworth’s signing on Greg Olsen; Tony Romo’s enhancements; a classic Twitter spat between reporters, and much more.

Following Marchand, David Shoemaker from The Ringer joins the podcast to discuss Netflix’s Mr. McMahon, a six-part docuseries where he served as a producer and commentator. Shoemaker delves into the production challenges, including a major lawsuit against Vince McMahon during filming, their experiences interviewing McMahon, the dynamics within the McMahon family, and more.

Following Shoemaker, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week’s discussion spans the MLB playoffs, NFL scheduling issues, Dana Carvey, Saturday Night Live, Sal’s trivia about presidents, and more.

You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina below or on Apple and Spotify.

You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated’s YouTube channel.

2. Kirk Herbstreit’s weekly schedule is incredibly hectic as he covers Thursday Night Football for Amazon, participates in College GameDay every Saturday morning, and then commentates a game later that afternoon or evening.

Herbstreit’s busy routine was the subject of an engaging animation video.

3. Highlights from Wednesday’s MLB playoff games:

The local radio broadcast of Garrett Mitchell’s pivotal home run for Milwaukee was outstanding.

The Royals’ social media team declared victory over the Orioles after Kansas City’s elimination of Baltimore.

This payroll statistic circulated online after the Tigers ousted the Astros.

This was an unfortunate time for ESPN’s Michael Kay to make an error.

ESPN received positive viewership figures for the first day of the playoffs. Its coverage of the four wild-card games attracted over 2.5 million viewers, a 15% increase from last year.

4. I’m captivated by a good “undercover” prank, so this teaser from Prime Video featuring a new show where Baker Mayfield goes undercover among Bucs fans is a must-watch for me.

5. My Twitter mentions have been overwhelmed since posting the ALDS broadcaster assignments for TBS this morning.

Here are some of the responses that made me laugh out loud.

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