Ever since the shocking inclusion of Jeff Van Gundy in ESPN’s summer round of layoffs, there had been much speculation about what the network would do regarding his longtime analyst partner Mark Jackson and their plan for a new NBA Finals broadcast booth.
Would Jackson work a two-man booth with Mike Breen? Would he work his way down the ladder as ESPN searched for new voices? Would he ultimately join Van Gundy in saying goodbye?
On Monday we finally discovered the answer. Hours after it was reported that Doris Burke and Doc Rivers would come alongside Mike Breen to form a brand new top announcing team at ESPN, it was revealed that Jackson was let go from the network in its entirety.
Later that evening, Jackson released his first public comment regarding his departure on his Twitter page. He said that he was “shocked and dismayed” by the suddenness of his exit. However, the statement is also filled with praise for his longtime broadcast partners and crew members as well as gratitude for his many years at ESPN.
— Mark Jackson (@MarkJackson13) August 1, 2023
The trio of Jackson, Breen, and Van Gundy stands as one of the most accomplished broadcast booths in the history of sports television, calling an incredible 15 NBA Finals for ESPN/ABC dating back to the 2007 edition. Their time together was only interrupted by Jackson’s tenure coaching the Golden State Warriors when Breen and Van Gundy called the 2012 and 2013 Finals as a two-man booth. While Jackson may not have been everyone’s favorite analyst, his chemistry with Van Gundy and Breen was undeniable.
Burke and Rivers bring a lot to the table as analysts themselves and have plenty of experience at ESPN (Rivers previously called the NBA Finals with Al Michaels before the Breen-JVG-Jackson trio), but how they work together will be one of the more compelling storylines in NBA media next season.
Now that ESPN is moving on from Van Gundy and Jackson as a pairing and moving to Burke and Rivers, there are a couple of lingering questions that remain. If this was truly a decision based on budgets, why did the network bring in a (likely) high-priced replacement in Rivers, who was making $8 million per year to coach the 76ers? If this was done to implement a new vision at ESPN for their NBA coverage, why not announce that they were moving on from Van Gundy and Jackson at the same time? If anything, the timing of letting Van Gundy go in June and then releasing Jackson a month later makes it appear as if the network didn’t really have a long-term strategy and was hoping to piece something together through whatever or whoever became available. From that perspective, it’s easy to see why Jackson might be so surprised.
As for what the future holds, a return to coaching for Jackson or Van Gundy certainly isn’t out of the question given the numerous links for both men to open jobs in the past. But with a new NBA media deal on the horizon and potential new television partners looming, they may also find a new home to call games once again.
