One of the trademarks of ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro’s era is being unbound by how things have been done in the past at the network. The idea that Bristol, the birthplace of ESPN, has to be the epicenter of the network is now a yesteryear idea. When Pitaro aims for the biggest names on his air, he doesn’t care who produces them or from where, just that they are on ESPN’s platforms.
Pitaro brought in Peyton Manning with a work-from-home arrangement in Denver for the “Manningcast” alternative broadcasts to “Monday Night Football.” He lured Joe Buck and Troy Aikman from Fox to MNF with the promise of millions and remaining together. Pitaro allowed Pat McAfee to keep control of his show from Indianapolis, while ESPN, now in its mid-40s, received a direct line to the young target audience it craves.
With Amazon Prime Video and NBC Sports entering the NBA, Pitaro wanted to finally solve the issue of ESPN’s “NBA Countdown” failing to be as good as rival TNT Sports’ iconic “Inside the NBA.” He wanted Charles Barkley, the famed “Inside” analyst, on ESPN’s air.
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Three weeks ago, according to sources briefed on the discussions, Pitaro called Luis Silberwasser, his counterpart at TNT Sports, and told him, essentially: We can solve each other’s problems.
TNT had contested its failure to retain NBA games by suing the league and demanding Prime Video’s package. It was never going to happen, so the league and TNT Sports’ parent company were moving forward on a way forward. Still, “Inside the NBA” needed a regular home around the league’s games. This is where Pitaro stepped in.
In one of the landmark trades in sports media history, officially announced Monday, Pitaro has brought in Barkley and friends in exchange for 13 Big 12 football games and 15 Big 12 basketball games. No money is being exchanged between the sides, according to sources briefed on the deal. The agreement is for six seasons.
TNT Sports needs the inventory, though the games will not be the top ones from the conference. TNT Sports has not folded since losing the NBA. Besides keeping a relationship with the league that will result in hundreds of millions in profits, it also has first-round College Football Playoff games, with an opportunity to license more from ESPN. It has also added tennis’ French Open, Big East hoops and NASCAR.
Starting next year, Barkley and studio host Ernie Johnson Jr. will lead ESPN’s big-game NBA coverage for opening night, Christmas Day, the ABC regular-season games (primarily on Saturday after college football) and throughout the playoffs, and the NBA Finals. When ABC doesn’t have the space for the postgame, it will shift over to ESPN. ESPN’s “NBA Countdown” moves down to No. 2 in the order.
“Inside the NBA” will emanate from TNT’s Atlanta studios with TNT producers. There is no reason to think it will sound different.
Though fellow analyst Shaquille O’Neal still needs a new contract, he has indicated to top decision-makers he wants to stay with the band. Analyst Kenny Smith, with no other options, is not going anywhere. Barkley and Johnson are under contract.
It is a win for everybody, except maybe Amazon Prime Video and NBC, the new kids on the TV block next season. They wanted Barkley and company, but Pitaro beat them by going to Silberwasser.
ESPN’s Jimmy Pitaro, at the 2023 ESPYs. (Kirby Lee / USA Today)
After losing the NBA to Amazon and NBC, TNT Sports’ David Zaslav invoked matching rights on the Prime Video deal. There was no real expectation that TNT would claw back games, but it was a pain in the Naismith for the NBA.
A trial could have led to a discovery process that the NBA likely didn’t want to go through. Instead, TNT Sports stays in business with the league with game rights in places like Norway and Poland and the ability to use House of Highlights as a fire hose for the league’s best plays around the world.
It figures to make hundreds of millions on the deal — $70 million per year over the first five seasons, according to sources briefed on the contract — and can say it is still in the NBA business over the next 11 years. So give TNT Sports a “W” after taking the major “L” of losing the game rights in the States.
Pitaro needed this win on his NBA coverage. Next year, NBC will start strong with Mike Tirico and Noah Eagle as its play-by-players. Amazon already has agreed with the best basketball game caller, Ian Eagle.
ESPN fumbled after its poor decision to fire Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson from its top NBA team and replace them with the coaches-in-waiting Doc Rivers and JJ Redick. Now, it is waiting to see if it will add Richard Jefferson, Jay Bilas or Tim Legler or stay pat with Mike Breen and Doris Burke. There is still more for Pitaro to fix.
ESPN’s “Countdown” has been a misguided show forever, never nailing the ending. Though Stephen A. Smith might still be the network’s biggest star, a pregame show focusing on his entrance into a New York Knicks playoff game last year is something the “Inside the NBA” crew would skew with flair.
Smith can’t lead every show, which is a mistake for the network and him when they try to program that way. But ESPN producers have failed to ever counter “Inside the NBA.” This has led to Pitaro fortifying from the outside. This is now the Pitaro playbook.
He pursued Manning forever before handing him the keys to outsource with Omaha Productions and work from the remote office of his choice. McAfee’s show might not work on linear TV, but he is socially relevant and has leaped to another level on “College GameDay” this season. Buck and Aikman are largely recognized as the best broadcast duo in the NFL.
Now, Pitaro has brought in Charles, Ernie, Shaq and Kenny. They are first-name-only guys in the NBA. TNT’s iconic show remains the same, just on another channel. Since that network is ESPN, Pitaro won.
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(Top photo of “Inside the NBA” panelists Ernie Johnson Jr., Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley: Mike Kirschbaum / NBAE via Getty Images)