ESPN Articles - Page 5

ESPN analyst and First Take host Stephen A. Smith clapped back at Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball’s attempt to prove he is healthy. "You really going to sit poolside on the bench and think because you getting up and sitting down… that makes you healthy? … Bro, you ain't healthy." Stephen A. Smith claps back […]

Stephen A. Smith had a lot to say about Sage Steele leaving ESPN. The often controversial Sportscenter anchor settled her lawsuit against ESPN and Disney and then decided to leave the company so she could “exercise [her] first amendment rights more freely,” and now the First Take pundit has weighed in on the situation. On […]

ESPN analyst and former NBA player Kendrick Perkins claimed the Philadelphia 76ers’ 2023-24 season is “already a failure” in an appearance with “First Take” Monday morning. "This season for the Philadelphia 76ers is already a failure. If I was Philly, I would blow the whole thing up right now and I would start with building […]

Will Apple TV take over ESPN in the future? According to Wall Street analyst, Daniel Ives, it’s a real possibility. As Apple TV looks to up its game in the streaming market, they know acquiring live sports will be key to increasing subscribers. After recently getting rights to Major League Soccer and Major League Baseball, […]

Stephen Curry has a lasting passion for golf. It was exemplified this NBA offseason when he competed in various celebrity tournaments and even won the ACC Golf championship. The Golden State Warriors star does not just keep this passion for himself. Rather, he imparts it to an HBCU like Howard University and its golf team. […]

Sage Steele has come out in the open after her controversial suspension from ESPN in the fall of 2021. Steele had a clean track record since she joined ESPN in 2007. That run ended in October 2021 after the network suspended her for her controversial comments on Jay Cutler’s podcast. When Steele returned to work […]

Former Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee is taking his wildly popular sports talk show to ESPN this fall, and we now know the Pat McAfee Show premiere date on the Worldwide Leader. The former NFL player will launch his show on the network the same day the 2023 NFL season kicks off. On Thursday, Pat […]

Already this NBA offseason, Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden has opted into his player option for next season, demanded yet another trade, called Sixers general manager Daryl Morey a “liar,” and vowed to never play for the franchise again. And ESPN NBA analyst and former player Kendrick Perkins says if Harden isn’t careful, these actions […]

Malika Andrews is set to become ESPN’s new host for the NBA Finals, replacing Mike Greenberg – who has hosted the show for the last two years – next season. Andrews rose to prominence during the 2020 NBA bubble, when she reported for ESPN directly from Orlando. She subsequently replaced Rachel Nichols – who she […]

ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins spoke out on an argument he and former NBA player JJ Redick had on “First Take,” when Redick criticized him for pointing out Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki and Nikola Jokic, who are each white players, won the Most Valuable Player when they did not finish top-10 in points per game during […]

The “Worldwide Leader in Sports” is getting into the gambling business with ESPN BET. However, in some corners of the sports world, the bigger news related to this deal is that this partnership between ESPN and PENN Entertainment means that the controversial Dave Portnoy just got ownership of Barstool Sports back for next to nothing. […]

New details about ESPN’s Band of the Year competition have been revealed. John Grant, the executive director of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge and the Celebration Bowl, joined the BCSN Sports Wrap and gave more information. “We’ve been working on the ‘Band of the Year’ concept since 2017,” he said at the start of the interview. “It […]

Mike Breen has broken his silence on the departures of Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy from ESPN’s NBA coverage. Breen thought highly of his long-time NBA on ESPN broadcast partners. He gave Jackson and Van Gundy credit for his success in the broadcasting booth, per the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand. "It's something we'll all […]

NBA analyst Mark Jackson has broken his silence following his shocking dismissal from ESPN. Jackson posted a message on social media thanking his NBA ESPN co-workers Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Lisa Salters, Tim Corrigan, and the rest of the staff members. Jackson also sent his well-wishes to his successors on the NBA ESPN set. […]

Former NBA point guard Mark Jackson spent nearly fifteen years as a member of ESPN’s NBA television broadcast team. But his time with the network has now come to an end. Jackson is out at ESPN, and the network has decided to have former Philadelphia 76ers coach Doc Rivers take Jackson’s place on ESPN’s NBA […]

ESPN is “closing in” on promoting Doris Burke to its main broadcast team for NBA games, according to the New York Post. The network is hiring Doc Rivers to join her and Mike Breen in the broadcast team, the report said, but the deals are not finalized. ESPN fired former analyst Jeff Van Gundy in […]

SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland was forthcoming when discussing media rights at SWAC Media Day. The commissioner spoke with several outlets concerning the conference’s partnership with ESPN, touting the success the conference drew with its current media rights deal. “When we get our numbers from ESPN there were ESPN plus games that outdrew ESPN games, […]

HBCU Bands are set to get a huge national platform this year. ESPN Events will host the inaugural Band Of The Year Championship. The event is scheduled for December 15th at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The Band Of The Year Championship will be a part of Cricket Celebration Bowl weekend, with the traditional […]

Scott Van Pelt is the top candidate among ESPN managers for the role of host on ESPN’s Monday Night Football Countdown for the upcoming 2023 season. Van Pelt has yet to accept the job and a formal announcement has not been made. ESPN’s Laura Rutledge was reportedly the other top candidate up for the job, […]

A former National Basketball Association (NBA) player has risen in the ranks to be the successor to former coach Jeff Van Gundy as an analyst for ESPN’s league broadcast. Front Office Sports’ Michael McCarthy reported that JJ Redick “has zoomed to the top of the contenders’ list to join ESPN’s top NBA game broadcast team.” […]

Jalen Rose recently made headlines after he was included in ESPN’s recent purge. The network deemed it necessary to cut costs after the recently-concluded NBA season, and this meant having to let go of no less than 20 on-air personalities. The layoffs included multiple big names in the broadcasting industry which unfortunately for him, also […]

Disney CEO Bob Iger has hinted that the company may be looking to sell some of its traditional TV assets, such as ABC and FX, as the media giant shifts its focus to streaming and digital platforms, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Bob Iger, who returned to the top job in November after a brief […]

WNBA ratings are significantly increasing this season on ESPN platforms midway through the 2023 season. WNBA games on ESPN are averaging 548,000 viewers, up 46% from the 2022 season. On ABC aired games, WNBA games are averaging 647,00o viewers, an 18% increase from 2022, per a graphic posted by ESPN PR’s Twitter account. #WNBA midseason […]

ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum had a controversial take on Urban Meyer’s tenure with Ohio State football. While appearing on “The Matt Barrie Show,” Finebaum revealed that he believes Urban Meyer “underachieved” during his time as head coach for Ohio State, per Daniel Bates of The Spun. Finebaum said, “I would argue going back in time, […]

Madden NFL 24’s Rating Reveal Schedule is on the way and starts next week on ESPN. The annual event, which celebrates the upcoming release of the newest Madden game, showcases all the ratings for all players. For the fourth year in a row, ESPN is the network representing the rating reveals. “Every year around this […]

One of the biggest pieces of sports news in the past two weeks has been the decision by ESPN to part company with much of it’s high-end, on-camera talent. Among those let go by the network is NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy, who had been on ESPN’s No. 1 broadcast team and had recently appeared […]

ESPN has been all over the news of late after it decided to go on a ruthless purge that saw no less than 20 on-air personalities fired from their respective posts. Some of the big names that were sacked include Jalen Rose, Max Kellerman, and Jeff Van Gundy, among others. ESPN, however, decided to keep […]

ESPN has parted with some of its notable names amid company layoffs, including longtime NBA commentator Jeff Van Gundy and hot-take artist Max Kellerman. The cost-cutting moves bring about huge changes to the network and leave viewers in a state of concern. Is it possible that someone as big as Stephen A. Smith could be […]

San Francisco 49ers legend Steve Young has been one of the best NFL analysts in the game for over two decades with ESPN. However, on Friday, Young was part of the massive ESPN layoffs that claimed the jobs of several big-name, on-air talents. On Friday, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post was the first […]

Suzy Kolber has been part of the sports media landscape for nearly four decades but was part of the ESPN layoffs on Friday. For anyone who’s watched her work the sidelines or host shows for almost 30 years at “The Worldwide Leader,” it’s not a surprise her final sign-off was classy, and her step sounds […]

The ESPN layoffs are going strong Friday afternoon, as the network is cutting ties with top talent like Jeff Van Gundy, Jalen Rose Suzy Kolber, Steve Young, Max Kellerman, and more. One top ESPN talent who got the ax may find a soft landing spot, though, at a rival network. Rumors are that Keyshawn Johnson […]

Sports fanatics like Pat McAfee are rejoicing on Twitter as they discover the return of SlamBall, set to show on ESPN. The trampoline-based basketball league will be showcased on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN+ throughout the 2023 and 2024 seasons. The action kicks off on July 21 this year, with over 30 hours of live coverage […]

Former NFL star Keyshawn Johnson, former NBA player Jay Williams, and radio and TV host Max Kellerman could all be out as ESPN looms and the network axed their daily ESPN Radio show, Keyshawn, JWill & Max. ESPN is in the midst of a major shakeup as the “Worldwide Leader” tries to become more profitable, […]

ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith thanked Skip Bayless for helping to create his successful career with the network. “Skip Bayless brought me to ‘First Take,’” Smith said on “The Stephen A. Show” on YouTube. “Skip and I have had our differences over the years. We looked each other in the face, we had a conversation […]

Given his track record with the Golden State Warriors, there is very little doubt that Bob Myers will receive a lot of offers from opposing NBA franchises now that he’s announced his decision to step down from his high-ranking post with the Dubs. As it turns out, one particular organization has already shown a real […]

Looks like Pat McAfee can afford to invest in some new tank tops. The media personality’s new broadcast deal at ESPN is reportedly for 5 years and around $85 million, according to the New York Post. McAfee responded to the Post via Twitter direct messages when asked about the terms of the deal, saying ““Interesting […]

ESPN analyst Samantha Ponder was criticized in a USA Today column after she called for “fairness” in girls’ high school sports in response to a tweet about transgender athletes competing. Thursday, Ponder quote-tweeted former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who has spoken out against transgender women competing in women’s sports. Gaines showed texts she […]

Stephen A. Smith of ESPN First Take recently addressed to the fans if there was any beef between him and JJ Redick, his co-host. Stephen A. spoke on his Know Mercy podcast about the matter, and defended JJ Redick for his comments after First Take aired Tuesday morning. He would tweet it out later in […]

Tennis superstar Serena Williams will be the subject of a new ESPN docuseries entitled In the Arena: Serena Williams. The announcement was made at the Walt Disney Company upfront presentation in New York, with Williams herself taking to the stage to unveil the series, according to Deadline. The docuseries will delve into Williams’ life, legacy, […]