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ESPN Adds Andre Iguodala, Austin Rivers and Scott Perry to NBA Coverage

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A few days after announcing his retirement, ESPN has announced that Andre Iguodala will be joining the network, officially launching his sports media career. The 2015 NBA Finals MVP and four-time NBA champion will appear on studio programming including NBA Today, First Take and SportsCenter. Iguodala will balance these media responsibilities with his work founding a $200 million venture capital fund with business partner Rudy Cline-Thomas.

“I got to know Andre over the past year, and I’m impressed with his willingness to be candid with his own podcast,” ESPN head of event and studio production Dave Roberts said. “This is something that is of mutual interest to both of us, and we’ll just see how it goes.”

The network has also added longtime NBA guard Austin Rivers to NBA coverage, and he will call an NBA game this season alongside his father, Doc Rivers. He has been hosting his podcast, Off Guard with Austin Rivers, where he has given his opinions and insights about the game.

Former New York Knicks general manager Scott Perry is also part of the lineup for studio coverage, contributing his expertise to programming including NBA Today and SportsCenter. Moreover, Las Vegas Aces head coach and two-time WNBA champion Becky Hammon has reached a contract extension with the network, along with former WNBA head coach Stephanie White.

“I think the currency factor is very relevant in the decision because I think that it serves the fan well when you have a coach just off the bench, or you have someone like a Bob Myers who is the architect of four World championships, who just spent recent years looking at the rosters and talking strategy about every one of his past competitors,” Roberts said. “They bring a sense of currency and makes it more relevant to the fan who are watching these games.”

The network will also highlight Hubie Brown’s 50th season in the Association throughout its coverage, a testament to his dedication to the craft and ability to enhance the broadcast utilizing his versatile experience. Brown coached 33 seasons in professional basketball, including 15 in the NBA, and joined ESPN in 2004 as an analyst for the NBA on ABC.

“When you watch a game Hubie’s on, you’re guaranteed to learn something about the game,” Roberts said. “It’s an honor and a privilege to be on the same team as Hubie, and we look forward to watching him in action.”

Following company-wide layoffs, ESPN announced a new lead NBA commentary booth of Mike Breen, Doris Burke and Doc Rivers that will make its regular-season debut Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden when the New York Knicks face the Boston Celtics. Previous analysts Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson were included among the layoffs, breaking up the longtime lead booth that called 15 NBA Finals series together.

In addition to the new voices of the NBA Finals, the network named a primary secondary booth – Ryan Ruocco; JJ Redick and Richard Jefferson – that Roberts previously referred to as a “succession plan.” The trio will call the NBA Sunday Showcase series on ABC, along with other marquee events and games throughout the NBA Playoffs.

ESPN is in the penultimate season of its media rights deal with the NBA and is a property that the network is interested in renewing. Burke Magnus, the entity’s president of content, told Barrett Sports Media in a recent interview that the network considers the Association to be an important property to retain within its broadcast portfolio.

“I think the NBA league office is really forward-thinking and innovative, and it kind of fits perfectly with our worldview,” Magnus said. “I would say it’s really important for us – we’re very focused on it – but at the same time, we have to balance that excitement and enthusiasm with some financial discipline as well.”

The network also revamped its NBA Countdown cast, retaining Stephen A. Smith and Michael Wilbon while adding two-time NBA Executive of the Year Bob Myers and host Malika Andrews to the regular lineup. This team will make its debut ahead of the Knicks-Celtics matchup on Wednesday night and present a doubleheader that concludes with the professional debut of No. 1 overall draft selection and young phenom Victor Wembanyama. He and the San Antonio Spurs will take on the Dallas Mavericks at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on the opening slate of games.

Joe Buck: I’m Not Interested in Chasing Every Event Just to Say I’m Doing It

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Joe Buck: I’m Not Interested in Chasing Every Event Just to Say I’m Doing It

Joe Buck, who signed a multi-year contract with ESPN to continue working with Troy Aikman on Monday Night Football, departed FOX Sports to take the job, ending his time on baseball coverage. His time as the lead voice of MLB on FOX concluded with the call of the 2021 World Series and says he won’t be coming back to MLB anytime soon.

In an interview with The Morning Roast on 95.7 The Game, co-host Joe Shasky acknowledged that Buck’s 24 World Series appearances are tied with the All-Star selections for former St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Stan Musial. Buck remarked that he is proud of the accomplishment and is fortunate to have bosses and a network that had confidence in him to meet the moment. For now, though, he is focused on the NFL and his responsibilities on Monday nights throughout the season leading up to a Super Bowl in 2027.

“I’m happy to walk away from it and raise two more kids,” Buck said, who is raising 5-year-old twin boys. “I’ve got daughters that are in their 20s, and it’s time to be a dad again, and just chasing every event just to say that I’m doing it is not something I’m interested in doing.”

Co-host Bonta Hill told Joe Buck that he and Shasky were raised in the Bay Area and do not loathe his commentary, despite Buck telling them he’s constantly told while in San Francisco that he’s negative toward the 49ers and Giants, sharing that he genuinely misses listening to him on the baseball broadcasts. Buck called all three of the San Francisco Giants’ World Series championships in the 2010s, and articulated a message to listeners in response.

“Giants fans miss me now,” he said. “All those World Series wins; all the, ‘You hate the Giants,’ where am I now? Where are they now?”

“You’re on Monday Night Football and the Giants are nowhere to be found right now,” Hill replied.

Howie Carr: CNN ‘Predictable and Cringey’ During Speaker Debacle

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Howie Carr: CNN ‘Predictable and Cringey’ During Speaker Debacle

After ousting Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on October 3rd, the House of Representatives has continually failed to elect a replacement. Radio host Howie Carr believes CNN is reveling in the developments.

During his Morning Minute Friday, Carr argued that coverage from the cable news outlet was easily labeled as “predictable”.

Carr said former Congressman Adam Kinzinger “is fulfilling his analyst duties at CNN better than the senior Democrat operatives with press passes could have ever dreamed”. He added that all of the former representative’s analysis is always “based on personal grudges”.

The syndicated radio host continued by arguing that the network has fallen on hard times and is now simply pandering to the lowest common denominator after Kinzinger said the potential election of Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) would be the worst person to possibly appoint to the position besides Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).

“With hires like Adam Kinzinger, CNN continues to stamp itself as the news version of a low-budget holiday romance channel,” said Carr. “It’s predictable, it’s cringey, and suburban housewives can’t look away.”

Corus Entertainment National Director of Talk Radio Larry Gifford Departs

BNM Staff
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Longtime news/talk and sports radio program director Larry Gifford has announced his exit from Canadian broadcaster Corus Entertainment.

During his time with the organization, he served as the Director of Talk and Talent and also served as the company’s national director of talk radio.

“These roles have allowed me to work with some of the most talented individuals from dozens of departments, both on and off the air. I am truly proud of all that we’ve achieved together. Our successes, big and small, have been a result of the dedication, creativity, and hard work of this fantastic team,” Gifford said. “I want you to know that I’ll be cheering you on from afar as you continue to excel and make an impact in the world of radio.”

Before joining Corus Entertainment in 2016, Gifford programmed News/Talk 97.3 KIRO and 770 KTTH in Seattle. He also served previously as Program Director of 710 ESPN Los Angeles, 1460 The Fan in Columbus, and nationally for both FOX Sports Radio and ESPN Radio.

Gifford was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2018 and shared that he will undergo a Deep Brain Stimulation surgery this week.

“I’ll carry with me the memories and experiences shared with each of you, and I’m grateful for the friendships and connections made along the way,” Larry Gifford told colleagues in an email announcing his departure. “Please stay in touch, and let’s not say goodbye but rather ‘until we meet again.’ I look forward to crossing paths in the future.”

Former NBA Star Lou Williams Joining FanDuel TV

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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.

ESPN Has Opt-Out in MLB Contract After 2025

BSM Staff
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ESPN Has Opt-Out in MLB Contract After 2025

As negotiations for media rights in the NBA and expanded College Football Playoff approach – and with multiple entities reportedly interested – there seems to be a wrinkle that could impact the proceedings. ESPN, in its seven-year deal with Major League Baseball, pays approximately $550 million per season – $100 million of which is allocated for the playoffs. Andrew Marchand of The New York Post reports that the network has an opt-out clause in its contract following the 2025 season, something that the network could choose to enact in order to reallocate its resources amid a changing media marketplace.

The network has the broadcast rights for Sunday Night Baseball, the Home Run Derby, and the Wild Card Series, all properties that traditionally amass sizable viewership. The Derby averaged 6.11 million viewers across platforms this past year, the lowest mark for the event since 2018, while the ratings for the Wild Card Series garnered 2.25 million across the eight games, down 18%. While it was out of ESPN’s control, all series ended in 2-0 sweeps, marking seven of the first eight matchups under this new format to result in this outcome.

In the second year with its revamped broadcast team of Karl Ravech, Eduardo Pérez, David Cone, and Buster Olney, Sunday Night Baseball ratings dropped 2% year-over-year, still hovering around an average of 1.5 million viewers.

MLB is in the midst of uncertainty as it navigates Ch. 11 bankruptcy proceedings for Diamond Sports Group, which currently holds local broadcast rights for 14 of the 30 teams. As ESPN prepares a direct-to-consumer offering, its impending direct-to-consumer product, the network is reportedly looking to add a tier that will allow fans to watch local games for an extra fee.

Last season, the league aired regional broadcasts for the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks through its local media department, producing and disseminating these contests after Diamond rejected the existing contracts. Moreover, each team received at least 80% of the money they were owed under the previous deals to ensure competitive balance. The league recently filed a motion to conclude the exclusivity period for the Sinclair subsidiary, demanding answers regarding next season.

The league itself reportedly has an opt-out in its contract with ESPN, although the parameters of such are not known.

Vermont Public CEO Scott Finn Departing

BNM Staff
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Vermont Public CEO Scott Finn Departing

Vermont Public President and CEO Scott Finn has announced he’ll be departing the organization at the conclusion of the current calendar year.

Finn joined the outlet six years ago when it was strictly known as Vermont Public Radio. In 2021, he oversaw the unification of the state’s public radio network with Vermont PBS.

“Two years after our merger, Vermont Public is in an incredibly strong position in terms of audience, talent, finances, and infrastructure and I’m so proud of all we have accomplished in service to Vermont and beyond,” said Finn. “Now is the right time to find the next leader to steward this great organization forward, and for me to find a new adventure.”

Prior to joining Vermont Public Radio in 2018, he worked as the CEO and Executive Director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

“Under Scott’s leadership, Vermont Public has grown to serve more than one million people every month on multiple platforms – online, radio, and TV,” Board President Marguerite Dibble said. “It has more than 40,000 members in a state with only 643,000 people which is just awesome. We so appreciate Scott’s leadership and wish him well in his next chapter.”

Senior Vice President of Development Brendan Kinney will serve as the interim CEO after Finn’s exit.

Local Advertising Projected to Grow 2% in 2024, New Projections Show

BNM Staff
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Local Advertising Projected to Grow 2% in 2024, New Projections Show

Some leading advertising analysts have shared their belief that local advertising will slightly drop next year. However, new projections from BIA Advisory Services claim local advertising will rise ever so slightly in 2024.

The new report released in the 2024 U.S. Local Advertising Forecast claims all media advertising will hit $175.6 billion next year, thanks in large part to the upcoming presidential election.

That figure represents an 8.6% increase compared to 2023 despite the concerns of an ad market downturn.

Local advertising is expected to account for $164.5 billion, rising only 2.2%.

“As expected, 2024 will be driven by political spending, and, even in markets that are not highly contested there will be a large amount of political advertising,” said Vice President of Forecasting & Analysis Nicole Ovadia.

“Local political advertising will be fueled by the Presidential and Senate campaigns as well as issue-based advertising. When we look at the forecast without political, we expect only a slight increase in ad spending due to both global and local economic trends that may create more cautious spending.” 

The forecast projects that connected and over-the-top television can expected a nearly 40% increase, with over-the-air television seeing a 30% increase. Political advertising is forecasted to grow exponentially next year. The sector will spend a whopping 2028.3% more next year than it did this year.

“When you look at which media will grow from this year to 2024, local political advertising is the main driver, which is terrific for local sellers of these channels,” said Ovadia. “Beyond political, several other verticals will increase next year.

“One category to keep an eye on is Realtors looking to advertise to drum up demand. Declining verticals include those that experienced growth during the pandemic, like veterinary services, that have now waned. Also worth noting is that many states legalized online gambling this year so we expect this sector to reduce its local ad spending and move towards National/Network advertising going forward.”

Pat McAfee: I Haven’t Signed College GameDay Extension Due to Pushback From Fans

BSM Staff
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Pat McAfee: I Haven’t Signed College GameDay Extension Due to Pushback From Fans

Pat McAfee is well aware of the recent survey done by The Athletic that showed 49% of respondents didn’t like seeing McAfee on College GameDay, and while he knows he’s not everyone’s cup of tea, even Pat acknowledged that 49% has made an impact.

McAfee quote tweeted The Athletic’s Chris Vannini, who posted a screenshot of the article containing the results of the survey, on Sunday morning offering his thoughts.

“I’ve never been friends with a human that reads The Athletic so I’m not 100% sure what style of human these 3100 folks are but HUGE Shahtaht to the 30%,” he wrote, alluding to the results of the survey that found 30% of respondents actually liked seeing Pat on GameDay.

McAfee initially signed a two-year contract in 2021 that added him to the desk of ESPN’s signature college football pregame show. Pat continued in his tweet on Sunday that his future on the show remains unclear presently.

“To the 49%, I have some great news,” he said. “I have heard you all very loud and clear since the beginning of my stint with GameDay. It’s one of the biggest reasons why I have not re-signed a contract with the legendary show.”

Still, McAfee said he’s looking forward to finishing out this 2023 season and learning from all the experiences he’s had on GameDay the last two seasons.

“Excited to enjoy the rest of this year,” he said. “That’s shaping up to be a GREAT one, and then see what the future holds.”

“It’s been an absolute blast and an honor to be at that desk and to work with the fine folks of that family,” Pat continued.

McAfee joked that he’s enjoyed having to work for basically 7 days a week the last two football seasons. So perhaps McAfee is at a point where he may scale back what he’s doing starting in 2024 in addition to his daily sports talk show.

Nick Wright: Some Shows Exist to Try to Go Viral

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Nick Wright: Some Shows Exist to Try to Go Viral

FS1 host Nick Wright has his show First Things First in a great place, and it’s something he’s very proud of.

Wright was interviewed on the House of Strauss podcast with Ethan Sherwood Strauss, and Nick said he and co-hosts Chris Broussard and Kevin Wildes have managed to just find the perfect balance that works for their show.

“The reason our show is succeeding is because we have found this very fine line to straddle of taking the sports super seriously and not taking ourselves seriously at all,” he said. “People are tuning in because they love sports. So if you treat it like it doesn’t matter, you’re disrespecting the audience in my opinion.”

“Brou is great at really all of the stuff we need to do and so that’s why in my opinion our show works,” Wright added. “It feels like a good hang to people with some actual real information and substance.”

Strauss chimed in saying it’s clear how different their show is compared to other sports talk or sports debate shows on television.

“You guys have the best chemistry of any sports show right now, and I think it is resonating,” he said. “And it’s for those reasons that everybody seems to go home friends. Even if it’s a vigorous debate.”

Ethan added that while some shows gain better traction on social media in small chunks, Wright’s show is better observed as a cumulative work. He said there’s an aspect of self-awareness in the overall product Wright puts together.

Wright said it just varied how he’s perceived because what you see in clips on social media is different than what you get watching a full episode of First Things First.

“My approval rating is vastly different depending on how you consume the content I produce,” he said. “You know what I mean? If you’re someone that almost all the sports talk content you consume is via social media, here’s what you know about Nick: This f–king guy loves LeBron James, loves Patrick Mahomes, everyone else sucks and he’s never been wrong. Not everyone else sucks, but there is a kernel of truth in all of those things. But if you consume the show it’s very different.”

He did admit that things on social media with the most strident opinions that cut through end up getting more circulation, but that’s not the bulk of the show.

“Our show doesn’t do great on social media,” he said. “Does great on YouTube where it has full segments, but what’s interesting is I think a mistake that I know I made for a long time, and I see a lot of people make, is I watch and I’m like, ‘You’re not doing the show for the TV show, you are doing it for the 90 (second) clip that will crush on the internet.’ But it’s not part of an ecosystem within the show.”

“And sometimes I see things on Twitter, or I’m watching a show, and I see things and I’m like, ‘This was done for the clip, this wasn’t done for any other purpose than this will do well on the internet,’ he later added. “And I’m not saying there’s not a place for that, but I feel like that for some people has become the entirety of what they create.”

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