There have been plenty of reactions from the sports media following Zach Lowe's layoff from ESPN. Screen grab: ‘The Old Man and the Three’
ESPNBy Ben Axelrod on

With the start of the 2024-25 NBA season just weeks away, ESPN made a major change to its coverage of the league on Thursday, laying off senior writer Zach Lowe.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand first reported Lowe’s shocking firing, noting that the move was made for budgetary reasons. The move follows similar cuts to ESPN’s NFL coverage when the Worldwide Leader laid off Sam Ponder and Robert Griffin III for similar reported reasons in August.

According to Marchand, Lowe’s departure is expected to be the final cut during this round of ESPN’s layoffs.

Budgetary or not, the news that ESPN let Lowe go sent shockwaves through the NBA and sports media communities. Dating back to his time at the Bill Simmons-led ESPN vertical Grantland, the 47-year-old has widely been considered one of the best and most versatile members of the NBA media, who excels in explaining the Xs and Os of the game on various platforms, including writing, podcasts and television.

The decision to lay off Lowe seemingly indicates that ESPN no longer values—or is at least deemphasizing—the two platforms where he shined most: writing and podcasts. Unsurprisingly, the move resulted in no shortage of reaction across the sports media world, with most comments sharing similar themes of shock and dismay.

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.

View all posts by Ben Axelrod