When you focus on production, rather than human interaction, you slowly unmoor yourself from the way sports fans talk to one another.
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There are philosophies behind this: equal apportionment of precious TV minutes, careful prep to avoid Charles Barkley’s (or Stephen A. If you watch the NFL, you see the same technique on almost every network. No one has the time.ĮSPN isn’t the first network to treat its studio shows like this. There are no Barkleyesque declarations that the Bucks are the “ dumbest team.” No let’s-settle-down-here raised eyebrows from someone like Kenny Smith. On Countdown, ESPN’s announcers talk fast and look like they are always straining to stay on schedule. It felt like they were unveiling video and graphics packages because a producer said they ought to. Van Gundy and Jackson could have said all of these things during the next two hours. Van Gundy talked about Booker bouncing back. Jackson began with a point about Antetokounmpo’s “historic numbers.” Van Gundy talked about the Bucks defense. For some reason, ESPN has decided that Van Gundy and Jackson should provide more mini opinions. There, we met ESPN’s three game announcers: Breen and analysts Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. Then Taylor threw it to the court.Ģ021 NBA Finals Reset: Five Questions That Will Decide Bucks-Suns The Bucks Even the Finals. There was a final three-man weave between Rose, Williams, and Wojnarowski. Sample question: “What kind of journey has the league been on to make it to this moment?” And: “What has it been like for you as the commissioner and for the league to see so many young stars emerge on this big stage?” Then NBA commissioner Adam Silver stopped by for a chat with the crew. Like pregame interviews across sports, viewers saw only a single quote. They just need to sound like people talking basketball, preferably with one another.įor its second segment, the studio crew threw to ESPN sideline reporter Malika Andrews for an interview with the Bucks’ Khris Middleton. Given the massive audience of the Finals, its pregame shows don’t have to sound like The Lowe Post. Once again, they delivered takes (usually with a stat included) in a scripted sequence rather than having a conversation that might take them somewhere different and interesting. Counting Taylor’s intros and setups, the crew analyzed the game for about three and half minutes. Taylor prodded the crowd to chant “Bucks in six,” making the crowd a participant in the show, just like they are on GameDay.īut with a half-hour to set up Game 4, ESPN slowed down its fast break only slightly. Some executive at ESPN probably said, “Um, could we try to give this show some of the magic of College GameDay?” On Wednesday, ESPN put its hosts on a platform high above Milwaukee’s Deer District. It has made it impossible for the analysts to leave viewers with so much as a memorable line. It minimizes the participants in favor of ads, slick production, and equal air time. (As Michael McCarthy reported Wednesday night, Taylor might be headed to NBC when her contract expires this month.) ESPN has a second problem, one that has everything to do with the producers and nothing to do with the people on the air. I think he may have become its coordinating producer.įor more than a week, ESPN has been reeling from Rachel Nichols’s disparaging comments about Taylor, which revealed fissures at the network and led ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro to announce a company-wide town hall. Remember when the Suns whipped the ball around in Game 2 and ESPN play-by-play announcer Mike Breen said Hoosiers coach Norman Dale would approve? Norman Dale would love NBA Countdown’s halftime show. They “hand off,” in a time-honored TV sense, rather than have an actual conversation. They don’t nudge one another toward something interesting. They don’t get to challenge or clarify one another’s points. The weirder part is the way ESPN has set up its analysts to interact with one another.