Group play in the NBA In-Season Tournament is set to commence on Friday night with a prime-time matchup between the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. EST. The game broadcast will feature the new secondary broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Ryan Ruocco and color commentators JJ Redick and Richard Jefferson.
The NBA In-Season Tournament, which concludes with the semifinals and championship game taking place in Las Vegas, will be a new opportunity for the network to help launch a new aspect of the Association.
“I think this is really important, but also I think the people we have doing this are the right people to be doing it in front of the camera and behind the camera,” Tim Corrigan, ESPN Vice President of Production said. “Our bar is our bar, [and] we wouldn’t make excuses for anything we’re going to do. We’re coming out and trying to be great in the production of these events and the documentation of these events.”
JJ Redick is part of the new secondary broadcast team on ESPN, which the network’s head of studio and event production Dave Roberts called a “succession plan” prior to the regular season. Even so, he has called games with the broadcast crew on numerous occasions in the past, and feels comfortable working alongside his colleagues.
“I look at every game as a documentation of history, and in this case, I’m documenting the first ESPN broadcast of an In-Season Tournament game,” Redick said. “Last week, I was documenting [Victor Wembanyama’s] debut; in the playoffs, you’re documenting a playoff game. I look at every game as a unique sort of opportunity to talk about and view something that I dearly love.”
When the In-Season Tournament was initially announced by the NBA, it was met with some skepticism and pushback from fans; however, as the structure of the proceedings has become more clear, many basketball fans are looking forward to the event and seeing how their teams will fare against the opponents on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Redick does not understand the skepticism surrounding the games since they count towards the regular season and explained that he will likely continue to be himself on the air, providing his shrewd insights and esoteric knowledge regarding the sport.
“You get to the quarterfinals, you get to the semifinals, [and] finals – those are events,” JJ Redick said. “Those are going to feel like an actual playoff game, and look, if it doesn’t work, I’ll probably talk about it.”
The NBA announced the broadcast schedule for the quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship rounds of the In-Season Tournament earlier today. ESPN will carry the first game of the semifinals on Thursday, December 7th, along with a broadcast of the championship matchup on ABC on Saturday, December 9th.
