It’s been one of the worst-kept secrets in sports media, that famed NBA insiders Adrian Wojnarowski would be leaving Yahoo for the sanctity of ESPN. That was finally made official by ESPN. We know that he’ll join the Worldwide Leader on July 1, but why? After establishing himself at Yahoo, the #wojbombs that have become famous will now be based from ESPN’s Bristol, CT headquarters.
In an interview with USA Today, Wojnarowski discussed the reasons why he chose to return to ESPN where he had previously worked as a featured columnist saying it has many platforms to reach his audience:
I think ESPN gives you the best platform to reach as many possible people as possible with the best quality of content. There will be an opportunity to reach people and do it in a real committed fashion.
While he was at Yahoo with The Vertical, Wojnarowski rarely appeared on camera often doing voiceovers. He says he’ll be appearing on various ESPN shows such as SportsCenter, NBA Countdown, The Jump, E:60, Outside the Lines among others. And he praises ESPN for its continued commitment to the sport:
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Top to bottom, there’s a tremendous commitment to the NBA at ESPN. There’s tremendous talent there already covering the league in lots of different ways. I think I fit in well there. I think I fit in well at Yahoo and The Vertical. The structure that exists (at ESPN) here really appealed to me throughout.
Of course, as he leaves Yahoo, Wojnarowski gave praise to the company for allowing him to start covering the NBA full-time and start the Vertical:
It’s pretty rare in this business where you can build something from the ground up, and we did that at Yahoo. A lot of people helped put Yahoo on the map as a sports reporting and sports news entity, and I’m proud of it. I’m proud of the time I spent there. It’s a special group. It’ll always be a real special group to me.
Wojnarowski says he’ll be highly visible on both the .com side as well as the television side. He says even though the venue to see his stories will change, his ability to break stories, interview players, executives and produce stories won’t.
Come July 1, the outlet will be different, but the #wojbombs we have come to know will still be there and NBA fans will still get their insider fix from Wojnarowski.
About Ken Fang
Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013.
He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television.
Fang celebrates the four Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.