Even after canceling their daily talk show, ESPN has re-signed Bomani Jones and Pablo Torre. Also: CBS has made its hire of Charles Davis official; ESPN2 will begin airing the NBA 2K League; and more.
ESPN re-signs Jones, Torre, despite canceling their show
ESPN has reached contract extensions with former High Noon hosts Bomani Jones and Pablo Torre, the New York Post reported Tuesday, with the two set to contribute to ESPN’s various daytime shows and SportsCenter. The news comes nearly two months after High Noon aired for the final time.
Even as ESPN weighed High Noon’s future, the network was said to be interested in re-signing the pair. [NYP 5.5]
CBS makes Davis hire official
CBS Sports officially announced Tuesday that it has hired Fox NFL analyst Charles Davis to join its secondary NFL broadcast team. The news was first reported by the New York Post last month.
Davis will replace Dan Fouts on the “B” team, working alongside returning play-by-play voice Ian Eagle. He was previously on the Fox “B” team with Kevin Burkhardt. [CBS Sports PR]
ESPN2 to begin airing NBA 2K League
ESPN2 will begin broadcasting NBA 2K League competition starting Tuesday night, marking the first time that the esports competition has aired on linear television. ESPN2 will also air coverage on the following two Tuesdays, with additional TV coverage to be determined. The ESPN app is set to carry matches on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays throughout the season, which is set to last at least six weeks.
The ESPN networks previously carried the NBA 2K Players League. [ESPN PR 5.5]
Plus: NFL schedule release, UFC 249, Tokyo Olympics
The NFL will officially release its regular season schedule on Thursday, with ESPN and NFL Network both airing three-hour primetime specials. … ESPN will televise Saturday’s UFC 249 prelims at 6 PM ET, marking its first live domestic sporting event since a previous UFC event on March 13. The main event will air on pay-per-view. … ESPN will re-air the 1998 NBA All-Star Game Wednesday night, the first of its NBA encores that did not originally air on its family of networks. … The Tokyo Summer Olympics will be canceled, rather than postponed a second time, if it cannot be held on its rescheduled dates next year, a Japanese official said last week. [NFL PR 5.5, ESPN PR 5.5, 5.5; USA Today 4.28]
