NBA Countdown Crew Crossing Fingers For Christmas Day

Things just seem to feel different this year as we near December 25. A surge of new COVID-19 cases driven by the spread of the omicron variant has fostered feelings of apprehension and uncertainty around the world. People are adjusting and/or canceling their holiday plans while remaining vigilant during this winter surge. 

One of the institutions embarking in this battle is the National Basketball Association, a league that has seen 115 players enter its COVID-19 health and safety protocols this month alone. Currently,  those testing positive for COVID-19 have to remain in the protocols for a minimum of 10 days, or if a player registers two negative COVID-19 PCR tests from samples obtained in a span of more than 24 hours. Many of the league’s superstar players have entered the protocols, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Luka Dončić and Trae Young, all of whose teams are scheduled to take the floor Saturday. The NBA, however, has no plans to pause the 2021-22 season for now, instead opting to adjust to live with the threat of COVID-19 looming large.

ESPN and ABC will mark its 20th season bringing viewers exclusive coverage of all the action around the NBA on Christmas Day Saturday, broadcasting 13 hours of studio and game programming. The game action begins with a First Round rematch between the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks from Madison Square Garden. The day continues on with the NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks hosting the Boston Celtics at 2:30 p.m. E.S.T., followed by a showdown between the two best teams in the Western Conference – the Golden State Warriors and the Phoenix Suns – at 5 p.m. E.S.T. Shortly thereafter, the primetime game takes place on both ABC and ESPN at 8 p.m. E.S.T. between the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers from the newly-renamed Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif., with the statuses of stars Kevin Durant and LeBron James in question due to health and safety protocols and an ankle injury, respectively. Finally, the day concludes from Salt Lake City, Utah as the Dallas Mavericks visit the Utah Jazz at 10:30 p.m. E.S.T.

Throughout the game coverage, ESPN analysts Stephen A. Smith, Michael Wilbon, Jalen Rose, joined by host Mike Greenberg, will provide their knowledge, expertise and opinions to fans on NBA Countdown. The cast of the show was reconstructed prior to the tipoff of the NBA season, and is up 51% in its ratings as compared to last season, consistent with the 26% increase in NBA regular season game viewership on ESPN.

“In a very short period of time, the NBA Countdown team has delivered a very consistent product based on what I believe to be their strong knowledge of the sport, their relentless commitment to working around the clock if necessary, and the commitment to just the sports fans in general,” said Dave Roberts. “We all know that this show has been the subject of press in the past, and I just want to underscore that point [and the ratings increase] because I think it’s relevant as we head into the most important day [of the season] besides the NBA Finals.”

Throughout the year, protocols have been put in place at ESPN to ensure the health and safety of on-air talent and other staff and personnel both in studio and for broadcasts on the road. Additionally, media members have had to follow enhanced protocols at various NBA arenas, including TD Garden in Boston, Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia and Madison Square Garden in New York.

“We’ve been in arenas, and we have followed some new and really fascinating protocols in order to be on the floor unmasked,” explained Mike Greenberg, host of NBA Countdown. “[Additionally], the protocols at our studios at the Seaport are stringent and have been in place since the beginning of the pandemic, and ESPN has done a great job seeing to it that those are enforced.”

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the primary goal of television programs and broadcasts on ESPN was to be as close to perfection as possible. As circumstances have changed across the globe however, the nature of broadcast production has fundamentally shifted to ensure networks can continue to bring their viewers compelling and engaging content each day, albeit its presentation may not be up to par to what it had been within a lone studio environment in the past.

“I think the idea that it’s not going to always be perfect is now accepted,” said former NBA player and ESPN analyst Jalen Rose. “The idea of bringing people on with FaceTime or remotes – that wasn’t necessarily encouraged. It was tolerated. Now not only do multimedia personalities accept that [as] the way it is, but also fans accept the way it is. So if somebody was doing an interview now on TV and their television screen starts buffering, two years ago the television world would freak out because we are all about perfection, but now we understand that that’s going to happen, and it’s the new climate that we live in.”

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While NBA coaches and team personnel were required to receive a COVID-19 vaccination before the start of the season, NBA players were not – since they are under the aegis of the National Basketball Players Association. Nonetheless, 97% of NBA players have been vaccinated, with 65% of those players receiving a booster shot, something that has been scientifically proven to be advantageous in diminishing severe effects of the omicron variant. Yet there have been some notable players who have opted not to get vaccinated, including Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards, Jonathan Isaac of the Orlando Magic and Michael Porter Jr. of the Denver Nuggets.

As he battles a COVID-19 diagnosis himself, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, who is vaccinated, believes NBA Commissioner Adam Silver needs to invoke the “Best Interest of the Game Clause” and mandate players be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to maintain the competitive integrity of the game and allow for the completion of the season, something integral to media outlets covering the league.

“The only time a pause should take place is for the NBA to conduct a meeting with all the players in attendance and say: ‘Okay – either you all accept this vaccine mandate, or we’re going into a bubble. Those are your two choices,’” said Smith. “‘Pick one because what we’re not going to do is let the season come to a halt. We’re not doing it.’”

Due to New York City mandates put into place by Mayor Bill de Blasio, Irving, along with any other players on teams within New York City, is unable to enter an indoor arena without proof of vaccination, making him ineligible to play home games at Barclays Center, and across the East River at Madison Square Garden when the Nets visit the Knicks. Wherefore Irving’s limited availability as a result of his objection in getting vaccinated against COVID-19, the Nets decided not to allow him to play in any of its games this season, despite him being eligible to play games in all other cities outside of The Big Apple.

Since that decision was made in October though, the Nets, despite holding the best record in the Eastern Conference, have been decimated by injuries, causing star players Kevin Durant and James Harden to consistently play heavier minutes. Because of this and the organization’s championship aspirations, the team made the controversial move to allow the unvaccinated Irving to rejoin the team. During the intake process, though, Irving reportedly registered either an inconclusive or positive COVID-19 test, thus placing him in the NBA’s health and safety protocols.

The story has garnered much media attention throughout the first quarter of the NBA season, with Smith frequently voicing his opinion on the matter on First Take and Stephen A.’s World. As the saga has unfolded, a consistent point of emphasis articulated by Smith is that despite his “box office” talent, Irving is often not available or willing to play for various non-basketball related reasons. A core principle of Smith in his work ethic is to be available when called upon at ESPN, hence why he fully intends to be on the air, albeit remotely, on Saturday.

“The one obligation we have [as broadcasters] is to make sure that come hell or high water, 99 times out of 100, we’re there,” said Smith. “And the one time we ain’t there, it’s a damn good reason for us not to be there. Guess what? The same is applicable to any professional athlete; any professional coach; any professional team because you’re asking the audience to take time out of their busy schedule and to ingratiate themselves with whatever it is that you are offering… You [have] got to show up to work, or there needs to be a damn good reason why you’re not.”

“The loyalty that the fans used to have to teams, they don’t have anymore,” Rose said in response to Smith’s point. “Like Stephen A. was talking about, they now follow the players. What ends up happening is, yes, these same fans during the regular season are now conditioned that they know the best players might not be playing anyway because of load management.”

While football is the number one sport in the United States, Rose expressed that NBA players are simply more famous than National Football League players.

“You can go by any metric,” said Rose. “You can go by social media. You can go by commercials. You can go by the Forbes list. You can go by whatever you want. Basketball players are more famous than football players.”

For that reason, along with the sheer intrigue it would undoubtedly cultivate across the basketball landscape, Irving returning is a scenario that could resurrect some disappointment among fans amid a flurry of absent NBA players in health and safety protocols.

“I only root for the most interesting possible things to happen,” opined Greenberg, “and so with that in mind, I would love nothing more than to see [Kyrie Irving] go running out there on Saturday. I have no idea, literally none, whether he will or he won’t, but it sure would help us make this Christmas Day as memorable as any that I can think of in recent NBA years.”

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All major media networks have adapted to producing and disseminating content across multiple platforms to align with consumption trends and meet consumer demand, a process that has been expedited because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout Christmas Day, every one of the five matchups, along with telecasts of NBA Countdown, will be able to stream on the ESPN App. The prime-time game between the Nets and the Lakers will be broadcast on ESPN Radio with Marc Kestecher on the play-by-play and P.J. Carlesimo providing color commentary, along with the preceding game between the Warriors and the Suns with Sean Kelley and Ros Gold-Onwude on the call. Additionally, fans can watch the digital pregame show Hoop Streams, featuring Chiney Ogwumike and Christine Williamson, on the ESPN App, plus its simulcasts on the social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Everyone covering games on those platforms are optimistic for the future of this NBA season. But for now, they understand the fluidity and precariousness of a surge that everyone hopes is ephemeral in scope through a holiday season of disquiet and a dearth of quotidian ways of life.

“My mentality is that… the NBA [and] the networks themselves [are] putting forth their due diligence,” said Smith. “It’s a global pandemic that we’re talking about here, and everybody is acting like everybody is supposed to know the answers. Well, even the scientists don’t have all the answers. They’re figuring it out as we go along. We have to understand that, respect that, and come together as best as we possibly can to put forth our due diligence to make sure that we insulate ourselves.”

Derek Futterman

Derek Futterman is an associate editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production – including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms – and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, email Derek@BarrettMedia.com or find him on X @derekfutterman.