Sports Media Watch presents Announcing Recommendations. Today, the NBA on ESPN/ABC and TNT. Among the topics addressed: With Mark Jackson gone, should ESPN/ABC keep Mike Breen and Jeff Van Gundy together? Also, should TNT hire Shaquille O’Neal?
NBA on ABC/ESPN
Lead Broadcast Team
Current: Mike Breen, Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy
Recommendation: Mike Breen and Hubie Brown
With Mark Jackson having departed for the Golden State Warriors, ESPN/ABC will need a new lead broadcast team when the NBA resumes play.
Breen, Jackson and Van Gundy had an impressive four-season run as ESPN/ABC?s lead NBA team, calling five straight NBA Finals ? the most for any NBA broadcast team in at least the past 40 years. Considering that ABC had a different lead broadcast team in each of its first five seasons carrying the NBA, such consistency was quite the accomplishment.
That said, Jackson?s departure has opened the door for some much needed change. The Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy team had become tired ? and more importantly, too eager to talk about anything but the game. This is especially a problem with Van Gundy, who figures to dominate broadcasts even more next season without Jackson to keep him relatively in check.
Hubie Brown isn?t exactly a fresh face, but he?s still a solid analyst who stays focused on the game at hand. Though demoted after calling the 2006 NBA Finals on ABC, ESPN still thinks highly of him, as he has called the NBA Finals on ESPN Radio each of the past five seasons. Van Gundy may be more entertaining than Brown, but such entertainment value is better suited for the studio than for the game.
Breen was at his best with ESPN/ABC when he worked with Brown. He never seemed totally comfortable or authentic participating in the humorous back-and-forths between Jackson and Van Gundy.
Lead Studio Team
Current: Stuart Scott, Magic Johnson, Jon Barry, Michael Wilbon
Recommendation: Stuart Scott, Jeff Van Gundy, Michael Wilbon
Surprisingly, Stuart Scott is a better fit on ESPN/ABC’s NBA studio team than Hannah Storm, who anchored on the NBA on NBC during the league?s 1990s heyday. Storm did not seem as comfortable as Scott last season, her first covering the NBA since 2001-02.
Much like the Breen-Jackson-Van Gundy broadcast team, ABC?s studio crew has stayed consistent for three full seasons ? impressive, considering the amount of turnover seen in early years. However, consistency for the sake of consistency is not always a good thing, and there is room for improvement.
As mentioned before, Van Gundy’s style is more suited to the studio. Rambling over highlights is certainly preferable to rambling over live game action. Wilbon, who lacks most of the personality on ABC’s studio team that he displays on Pardon the Interruption, could serve as somewhat of a foil to Van Gundy.
NBA on TNT
Lead Broadcast Team
Current: Marv Albert and Steve Kerr (with Reggie Miller in the Conference Finals)
Recommendation: Marv Albert and Steve Kerr
No changes necessary for the lead team of Marv Albert and Steve Kerr. TNT should consider going with a two-man booth for the All-Star Game and Conference Finals, however, instead of adding Reggie Miller.
Lead Studio Team
Current: Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley (and occasionally, Chris Webber or Kevin McHale)
Recommendation: Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley (and occasionally, Shaquille O’Neal or Chris Webber)
Some thought was given here to moving Kenny Smith from the studio to games in order to make room for Shaquille O’Neal. After all, Smith has experience as a game analyst for MSG, and working alongside Kevin Harlan, he could be an upgrade over Reggie Miller.
However, the fact is that the chemistry between Johnson, Smith and Barkley is too strong to jeopardize, and there’s always the possibility that O’Neal and Barkley could clash over the course of a season together. A four-person studio team of EJ, Kenny, Charles and Shaq would be too crowded on a weekly basis, so if Turner does bring in O’Neal, it would have to be part-time.
