When the Knicks open the regular season Wednesday, they will do so without a familiar face courtside — reporter Tina Cervasio.
Cervasio, who had been at MSG since 2008, learned in late June her contract would not be renewed. MSG later hired Rebecca Haarlow for the role. Cervasio’s final assignment for MSG will be Sunday’s Red Bulls game against the Fire.
“I was very upset initially,” she said during the Mets’ off-day World Series workout at Citi Field Friday. “I was shocked. I did not see it coming. My contract was only up in a couple of days when I got the call. So it was very shocking and I was really disappointed.
“I loved my job covering the Knicks and Red Bulls. I was there a long time. Especially with the new staff, I just felt like it was a rough year covering 17 wins, or you could say 65 losses (last season). I felt like I laid really nice groundwork, and I was at the draft. I lost a job that I loved, so I was upset.”
Cervasio would not say who delivered the news, but she said she was told “they were looking to reach a new audience or a different audience, I don’t know. They were looking for a new chemistry.”
MSG issued a statement that said, “MSG would like to thank Tina for her work on Knicks and Red Bulls telecasts and we wish her all the best.”
“I wasn’t told I made a mistake,” she said. “I wasn’t told about an attitude or my work ethic. I’ve always changed the way they wanted me to change. If they wanted me to do something different I always did that … I didn’t expect anything was awry.”
Cervasio said hearing from a variety of people around the NBA made it easier to move on.
“I got an email from a current Knicks player on behalf of the guys that I covered that they were bummed to hear I wouldn’t be there and wishing me the best and praying for me,” she said. “So that really touched me.”
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Jason Barrett is the owner and operator of Barrett Sports Media. Prior to launching BSM he served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He has also produced national shows for ESPN Radio including GameNight and the Dan Patrick Show. You can find him on Twitter @SportsRadioPD or reach him by email at [email protected].
The NBA is currently in the penultimate season of its existing national television media rights deals with The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Discovery, collectively worth a reported $24 billion over the eight-year contracts. The league entered into an exclusive negotiating window with both broadcasting partners starting on Saturday, March 9, but is reportedly unlikely to reach a new deal before its expiration on Monday, according to Alex Sherman of CNBC.
Even if no deal ends up being reached by the deadline, both companies are in discussions about new media rights contracts with the NBA, as confirmed by the league. These discussions follow a 2023-24 season that garnered an average of 1.09 million viewers across ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV, which is up 1% over last year and represents the highest average across networks in four years, according to Jon Lewis of Sports Media Watch. Both networks will begin broadcasting the NBA Playoffs on Saturday, April 20.
“We continue to have productive discussions with Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery on a renewal of our media deals,” an NBA spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC.
Starting next week, the NBA will have the ability to engage in negotiations with other companies interested in the media rights package. As reported by CNBC, Amazon, Apple, YouTube TV, Comcast (NBCUniversal/Peacock) and Netflix have all expressed potential interest through conversations with the league. Numerous reports have indicated that the league is looking to add a streaming element into its next deal and is looking for an increase in rights fees. The NBA could reportedly look to sell games within the In-Season Tournament to a separate media company, potentially adding a fourth partner in the deal.
Warner Bros. Discovery linear network TBS began airing NBA games in 1984, with TNT following four years later. The Walt Disney Company has presented the league since 2002 across ABC and ESPN, which includes broadcasts of the NBA Finals. Both companies are aiming to launch a new joint streaming venture with FOX Corporation in the fall that would grant subscribers access to games and networks from all three companies.
ESPN is prepared to begin its coverage of the 2024 NBA Playoffs as 16 teams battle to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy as league champions. Various stars from across the Association will participate in the action starting with Round 1 on Friday night, including LeBron James, Jayson Tatum and Nikola Jokić.
Additionally, NBA on ESPN playoffs coverage will mark the postseason debut of the network’s new lead broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Mike Breen, analysts Doris Burke and JJ Redick and reporter Lisa Salters. Redick was originally a member of the secondary broadcast team with Ryan Ruocco, Richard Jefferson and Cassidy Hubbarth, but the departure of Doc Rivers from the lead crew to coach the Milwaukee Bucks led to this change.
Earlier in the year, ESPN Head of Event & Studio Production David Roberts referred to the secondary broadcast team as “the potential making of a succession plan.” With the alteration to the broadcast teams in-season though, he remains optimistic that the network will present a strong playoff performance. Redick brings a different perspective to the lead broadcast crew of a player recently removed from NBA game action who has demonstrated a propensity for analytics and explaining their significance to trends within the game. Outside of his broadcasting work, he exhibits versatility in sports media, appearing on various ESPN programs such as First Take, co-hosting both The Old Man and the Three and Mind the Game podcasts and co-founding ThreeFourTwo Productions.
“Hey, it makes us all look good,” Roberts said of Redick’s versatility. “The fact is that the more versatile you are, the more valuable you are, and JJ Redick and Stephen A. Smith are prime examples of that.”
Smith is a featured commentator and executive producer on First Take, but also engages in a variety of projects outside of the morning show. During the NBA season, he appears in studio or on location for NBA Countdown, hosts his own podcast, titled The Stephen A. Smith Show, and operates his media production company, Mr. SAS Productions.
Smith’s contract with ESPN is reportedly due to expire next year, and he has spoken candidly about his worth on numerous occasions. Additionally, he has stated that he wakes up every morning thinking about how he can make his bosses more money and how to get some of it, a sentiment he elaborated on in his best-selling book, “Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes.”
“Stephen A. loves the NBA, and his commitment to covering the NBA is just simply outstanding,” Roberts said. “He’s unafraid to say what needs to be said. He could care less whether someone is ticked off in the process because he also is an outstanding journalist who will back up his opinions with facts. So when you watch Stephen A., you’re watching a multi-versatile individual who can handle just about anything in broadcasting; in fact, I’ll say he can handle anything in broadcasting.”
Roberts proceeded to explain that a majority of ESPN talent are not “cookie cutter” and approach things in their own way. Earlier in the media conference call, he discussed Malika Andrews, who is in her first season hosting NBA Countdown, and how she brings an “exemplary” work ethic to the program. Roberts also divulged that ratings for NBA Countdown are up 7% year-over-year.
Additionally, he spoke about how studio analyst and color commentator Bob Myers always shows up to every meeting prepared and is an innate winner and team player. As long as the talent are doing things that fit their style and the content objectives of ESPN and The Walt Disney Company, Roberts explained, they are allowed to be their authentic selves on the airwaves.
“That’s the type of versatility we’re looking for,” Roberts said, referencing JJ Redick. “The last thing we want is talent that’s all the same, which amounts to nothing more than elevator music.”
FOX Sports and The Basketball Tournament Announce Multi-Year Agreement
“With a growing number of players I’ve crossed paths within the league committed to play, this summer will be both competitive and entertaining for TBT.”
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), the $1 million winner-take-all summer event announced a multi-year media rights agreement with FOX Sports to carry games on FOX, FS1, and FS2. As part of the agreement, the network will carry 27 TBT games live on linear television, including three on FOX.
“We are thrilled to make FOX Sports the new home of TBT,” said TBT co-owner and Golden State Warriors guard Chris Paul. “The event has experienced tremendous growth these past few years and this agreement will take it to new heights. With a growing number of players I’ve crossed paths within the league committed to play, this summer will be both competitive and entertaining for TBT.”
“We are excited to kick off our second decade of TBT with FOX Sports,” said TBT founder and CEO Jon Mugar. “Across FOX, FS1, and FS2, we will reach more basketball fans than ever before, further cementing TBT as a mainstay on the basketball calendar. This summer will make for our most electrifying tournament yet.”
TBT is a 64-team, single-elimination tournament hosted across eight regionals. All regional events are hosted by an alumni team representing a powerhouse college basketball program.
