ESPN’s NBA coverage has gone through quite the overhaul this offseason. It’s already been announced that the Worldwide Leader got rid of Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson as the analysts in its top broadcast booth, and according to reports, Doris Burke will be elevated and Doc Rivers will be hired alongside Mike Breen for the network’s biggest games.
Things will look a little different before games, too, as Jalen Rose was also let go as part of the collection of layoffs that saw Van Gundy and Jackson leave the network. And while we’re waiting to figure out who will take his place, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports that there will be a change in who hosts ESPN’s NBA Finals coverage, as Mike Greenberg will see his workload lightened a bit and Malika Andrews get elevated.
Andrews has a rather busy schedule with ESPN, but in recent years, she’s turned herself into one of the faces of the network’s NBA coverage. Marchand noted that she’ll continue to host the daily program NBA Today, and that she’s been the individual ESPN has trusted to host the editions of NBA Countdown that Greenberg hasn’t hosted. Now, she’ll be elevated to the main broadcast of the Finals, where she’ll be joined by Stephen A. Smith, Michael Wilbon, and as Marchand reports, a to be determined replacement for Rose.