It always seems so weird to go from watching TNT's great playoff programming to ABC for the finals. Breen and Van Gundy are admittedly very good, but Mark Jackson always drives me crazy. But what's way worse is that halftime show with Jalen Rose etc. It is just such a poor substitute for Ernie, Kenny, Shaq and Chuck. Boo!
I think it's funny that you say Jalen because to me he's like the only guy they have on those pregame and halftime shows that is entertaining and interesting to hear from... maybe Wilbon too. Steven A and Greeny fucking suck. They should have Wilbon host and have Jalen and two other players who are fun and knowledgeable or maybe Jalen another player and a coach. The shit they put on right now is whack.
I agree Mark Jackson always comes across like a know it all. For a guy who knows it all he doesn’t seem to be getting many coaching opportunities. Not a fan of Jalen either
That entire halftime crew absolutely hates Steven A Smith and they can't even hide it. They sit and either don't even look at the guy or when they do it's with complete disdain for his take. Where is the camaraderie? Where are the smiles and laughter? That crew isn't having a good time working together.
Seemingly nobody likes Mark Jackson but I don't like JVG very much, either. I think he sticks to his guns when it comes to first impressions of what he's seen. If you can't watch replay objectively you don't belong in that chair. Malika Andrews is fine but getting overexposed (all of ESPN's stars get run into the dirt). Breen is a legend and ESPN is horrible.
Which is why people are asking why they were not doing the Finals. You put the best people on the biggest platforms. ESPN should know this. They can work out deals with TNT. The other option is to get the NBA to use TNT for the Finals. Point stands SAS screaming at the camera for 1 1/2 minutes of the 3 minutes they actually are on between the 10 minutes of commercials was a bad look. Mark Jackson doesn't pull ratings.
Screamin Fucking A won't last long doing roundball...You can tell he already gets under other commentators skin.
People are mostly complaining about the pregame, halftime and post game shows. The actual announcer Breen is the best in the business, some people like JVG, I actually think most people like him but he does need someone grounded to level out his nonsense and that's not Marc Jackson who pretty much sucks in general. ESPN could use an overhaul of their in game announcers but it's nowhere close to the problem they have with their in studio people. That's a fucking shitshow and it unfortunately has to be compared to the brilliance that they pull off over at TNT.
They'd be the best announcers as well. Nobody else could compare. If they could I'd love to see them. They are almost certainly underpaid. They are good enough that the announcers don't matter. Their interactions with any announcers would immediately make the show better than anything else going. Such an incredible crew.
