ESPN put itself in a bind with JJ Redick likely headed to the Lakers

ESPN moved on from Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. Now the company's NBA crew is in limbo.

Jun 6, 2024 - 02:30

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ESPN put itself in a bind with JJ Redick likely headed to the Lakers

It's been nearly a year since ESPN laid off around 20 on-air talents. NBA Finals broadcaster Jeff Van Gundy was one of the top names included in the layoffs after 17 years calling the league's top series.

A month later, ESPN also let go of Van Gundy's running mate Mark Jackson.

Hall of Fame play-by-play announcer Mike Breen was left as the lone member of the longtime broadcast trio.

A few months later, ESPN announced that it would bring in another Hall-of-Famer, Doris Burke, to join Breen and become the first woman to ever call the NBA Finals on television. Rounding out the trio was Doc Rivers, who had just been fired as the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, but had experience calling the NBA Finals in 2004.

ESPN also cemented its B-team with play-by-play caller Ryan Ruocco and two rising stars and former NBA role players Richard Jefferson and JJ Redick.

The company had a new direction for the NBA entering this season and even had a contingency plan set. But that plan didn't even last until the NBA All-Star Game.

Doc Rivers left the booth in January after signing a deal to become the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.

ESPN explored the idea of keeping Breen and Burke as a duo. But in February, the company pulled Redick from the bench and placed him immediately onto the first team.

Redick retired from the NBA in 2021 and joined ESPN soon after. Through his daring performances challenging Stephen A. Smith on "First Take" and his in-depth basketball breakdowns on his podcast "The Old Man and The Three," Redick saw his star power shoot up quickly.

His placement on ESPN's A-Team was a premature one and ESPN placed a strong bet on the 39-year-old to learn fast. But with Redick set to call his first NBA Finals tomorrow, he's also likely going to leave the booth as The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that the Los Angeles Lakers are "zeroing in" on Redick as a candidate for their head coach position.

Redick hasn't secured the job yet — but the words used by Charania are akin to the way he and fellow NBA newsbreaker Adrian Wojnarowski post about NBA draft picks before they're officially announced so as to not completely spoil the broadcast.

For this news on Redick, it could be that he does not have the job yet or it could be the news cannot be confirmed because of his role as the caller of the NBA Finals. A head coach-elect calling the NBA Finals would not be a good look for the NBA or ESPN.

If Redick does eventually take the Lakers role — which would be as the coach of his "Mind The Game" podcast partner LeBron James — ESPN will find itself facing a major dilemma. Its top NBA Finals team will have lost two names in one season and a replacement will also be a premature candidate.

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These broadcast teams also need to build chemistry — one of the reasons it was reported that Jackson wasn't kept in the first place as the reported belief from ESPN was that Burke would work better with another candidate. Redick's plug-in role already made it so that the team would need to create chemistry on the fly, but this potential change will restart the process for the crew.

That is, unless ESPN decides to just use Burke and Breen as a duo like it had reportedly considered for a time after Rivers' departure.

Whatever direction ESPN goes, this dilemma puts a spotlight on ESPN's tumultuous hiring decisions. The sports network has struggled to find a consistent group that has worked for its studio shows, constantly adding names that have failed to live up to its counterpart on TNT, "Inside The NBA."

It did have a consistent team calling its NBA Finals and leading the charge. While Van Gundy reportedly had the ire of some in the NBA due to his on-air criticisms of referees and other NBA rules, but it was not driver for ESPN's decision.

Now the company has to accept that it put itself in this difficult situation.

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