The NBA’s longest-tenured broadcast partner may finally have interest in the WNBA. Plus: Yankees voice John Sterling has retired, Charles Barkley’s CNN show has been canceled; ESPN is working on a 30 For 30 documentary about Stuart Scott.
WBD interested in WNBA rights
Warner Bros. Discovery has expressed interest in acquiring rights to the WNBA, The Athletic reported Monday. The longest-tenured NBA broadcast partner at more than 40 years, WBD has never carried the WNBA beyond games on league-owned NBA TV.
The WNBA’s primary rights deal with Disney is negotiated as part of the NBA’s agreement with the company, and it would seem likely that any deal with WBD would follow the same template. The WNBA also has separate deals with CBS Sports, Scripps (ION) and Amazon Prime Video.
The division formerly known as “Turner Sports” has been steadily adding sports properties dating back to the end of the Jeff Zucker WarnerMedia era — most notably the NHL. Since the 2022 spinoff and merger that put the Warner Media networks under the control of Discovery, the list of properties also includes Discovery’s pre-existing suite of international rights. Notably, WBD has already acquired WNBA rights in the United Kingdom and Ireland under the “TNT Sports” banner it now uses on all domestic and international programming.
Yankees voice Sterling retires effective immediately
New York Yankees radio voice John Sterling has retired effective immediately, the team said Monday, bringing to an end his 35-year tenure with the team and 64-year broadcasting career. Sterling told Sports Illustrated Monday that he had wanted to retire “for a long time” and that he should have done so in March rather than return for another season. Sterling: “I’ve been on the air since Feb. 1, 1960 and I’m tired.”
Sterling joined the Yankees in 1989 after nearly a decade in Atlanta calling Braves and Hawks games. He previously called Bullets, Nets and Islanders games.
Barkley’s CNN show ends
The weekly Charles Barkley and Gayle King CNN talk show “King Charles” has ended after less than six months on-air, per multiple reports Monday. Per the New York Post, Barkley’s limited availability was an issue. CNN noted Monday that the show was always intended to run as a limited series.
CNN under then-executive Chris Licht spent months pursuing Barkley for a primetime role, part of what was envisioned as a retool of the network’s programming. By the time the show debuted — with King added at Barkley’s request — Licht had already been ousted from his position and the retool abandoned, leaving “King Charles” an awkward fit in what was an otherwise conventional cable news lineup.
ESPN developing 30 For 30 on life and career of Stuart Scott
ESPN announced Monday that it is developing a 30 For 30 documentary on the life and career of Stuart Scott, the longtime SportsCenter anchor who died of cancer in 2015. The news was first reported by Deadline. The film, which is currently in production and has no set release date, will focus on Scott’s style, cultural impact and personal struggles, including his seven-year battle with cancer.
One of the most prominent SportsCenter anchors during his career, Scott became as big a pop cultural figure as any who have ever anchored the show, at one point being spoofed on “Saturday Night Live.” His catchphrase-heavy style was polarizing at the time (if not uncommon in that era of SportsCenter), but the criticism he faced during the prime of his career had largely faded by the time of his passing. In the final months of his life, Scott gave a speech at the ESPYs that has been remembered in much the same vein as Jim Valvano’s speech at the event in 1993.
