When ESPN televises the Hawks' Feb. 5 matchup against the Spurs at State Farm Arena, it will be like any other broadcast, except for one thing.
As part of the network’s Black History Always celebration, ESPN will have an all-Black broadcast crew featuring play-by-play commentator Mark Jones, color analyst Richard Jefferson and sideline reporter Lisa Salters, plus crew members.
“With the abundance of talent that we have at ESPN, both in front of and behind the camera, I always thought that that would be a great idea,” Jones said.
Born out of casual conversations among colleagues who thought it would be a great opportunity if they all worked a game together. Those conversations sparked a process that began with them watching the NBA’s schedule release to find the right game.
“It honestly thrills me because the main thing that I’m hoping that this really, really helps us do, (is) inspire young people who happen to be dreaming or wanting a career in sports broadcasting, so that they can see that there are so many other roles that they maybe hadn’t thought of and given thought to,” Atlanta native and ESPN producer Rodney Vaughn said.
Students from the mass-media department at Clark Atlanta University will get the chance to tour the production mobile unit, where they’ll see the setup as it’s going on and all the work that occurs behind the scenes. They’ll also have a question-and-answer session.
In lifting the curtain to how the network runs its NBA broadcasts, Vaughn hopes that he can inspire Clark Atlanta students and audiences.
“I know that was something that happened to me young in my career,” Vaughn said, who has memories of conversations with his mentor, ESPN producer Kim Belton, early in his career.
Like Vaughn, Jones remembers his own mentor and the encouragement he received from Bryant Gumbel when he ran into him at a baseball stadium when he was 26 years old.
For Jones, the broadcast Feb. 5 also will help to bridge the gulfs of disconnect between athletes and media.
“I can give you a specific example,” Jones said. “An announcer may see Moneybagg Yo courtside, right, at a playoff game, and say, ‘Oh, there’s Moneybagg Yo.’ And just keep going on to naming a bunch of celebrities.
“Or if you’re Mark Jones, you can say, ‘Hey, there’s Moneybagg Yo, one of the hottest artists in the game right now, who got his start from Zach Randolph, a former NBA player, who, when he retired, started up a production company. And Moneybagg Yo was his first signee as an artist, and look where he is now.’ And I think being able to tell those stories of players and the culture at large benefit everybody because in sports, we’re storytellers.”
Between ESPN’s on-air talent and the producers and crew working behind the scenes, audiences can expect not only to get those stories but also strong game coverage.
The matchup Feb. 5 features two teams still figuring out their identities and looking to take that next step. Of course, the game will feature Hawks' three-time All-Star guard Trae Young and the top overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft in Victor Wembanyama.
“It’s, in my mind, it’s a landmark event (of an all-African American broadcast crew), but at the same time, the game is always going to be the thing,” Jones said. “And I think being able to show that, ‘Hey, listen, we are the best version of ourselves and doing an excellent job, because you’ve got some of the best in the business, elite broadcasters on this game,’ in my estimation, that it’s we can do it too. We can do it, too.”
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