The National Basketball Association’s all-time leader in scoring off the bench and three-time Sixth Man of the Year award winner Lou Williams announced his retirement from the game following the 2022-23 regular season. Throughout his 17-year NBA career, Williams played for six teams and averaged 13.9 points per game on 2.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists. Although he will no longer be suiting up on the hardwood, he will reportedly remain close to the game by embarking on a career in sports media.
Williams is reportedly joining FanDuel TV as the newest cast member of Run It Back, which features host Michelle Beadle, insider Shams Charania and analyst and former NBA forward Chandler Parsons. Although Williams and Parsons were never teammates in the NBA, they competed on the floor against one another many times and should bring unique perspectives to the air regarding the current composition and state of the Association. News of Williams’ move to the network was first reported by Andrew Marchand of the New York Post on Monday morning.
“Couldn’t be more excited to start the next chapter of my career off the court and in the studio with such pros like Michelle, Shams and Chandler,” Williams said in a statement. “FanDuel TV offered an incredible opportunity to showcase my deep knowledge of the NBA and I jumped on it. Can’t wait to help make Run It Back the biggest and greatest this season.”
The Run It Back show is one of three exclusive programs to FanDuel TV, which introduced the programming lineup amid its launch last August. Kay Adams hosts the midday show, Up & Adams, while Lisa Kerney anchors afternoons on More Ways to Win. The program will broadcast shows four times a week, Monday through Thursday, and will add a Friday episode from the week of Feb. 12 through the end of the NBA Finals.
“Investing in more episodes of Run It Back this season was purposeful. The show saw tremendous growth in its first season and we felt it deserved an expanded weekly lineup in order to reach its potential,” Kevin Grigsby, executive producer and senior vice president of FanDuel TV, said in a statement. “We also are bringing the co-hosts to Los Angeles so they can anchor a majority of the shows from FanDuel TV’s new state-of-the-art studio. There is an undeniable team chemistry our audience saw when Michelle, Shams and Chandler were together on set that is hard to replicate remotely.”
Coinciding with the start of the NBA season this week, Run It Back makes its return to the airwaves today at 10 a.m. EST/7 a.m. PST on FanDuel TV. The NBA season opens with a Tuesday night doubleheader on TNT featuring the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets facing off against the Los Angeles Lakers, followed by the Phoenix Suns’ matchup against the Golden State Warriors.
