ESPN has reportedly decided on its new top NBA broadcast crew, and there will be two new faces in the booth.
Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported on Monday that ESPN is finalizing agreements to promote Doris Burke and hire former NBA head coach Doc Rivers. Longtime play-by-play announcer Mike Breen will remain in his current role.
News of ESPN’s plan was first reported by Chad Finn of the Boston Globe earlier this month.
Former ESPN/ABC analyst Jeff Van Gundy was part of ESPN’s latest round of layoffs. Mark Jackson, who worked alongside Van Gundy and Breen as an analyst in a three-person booth, will essentially have been demoted once the new broadcast team is set.
Jackson might remain with ESPN and join play-by-play announcer Mark Jones on ESPN’s second team, or he could leave the network.
ESPN executives were “wary” of Van Gundy’s desire to coach in the NBA again, according to Marchand. The same issue could arise with Rivers, of course. Network executives were also said to be concerned that Burke and Jackson would not have the same type of chemistry that Van Gundy and Jackson had, which is why they wanted to bring in two new analysts instead of one.
