TNT has made a habit of doing some Players Only telecasts (which have led to some non-traditional broadcasting moments — Nate Robinson is no Jim Nantz when it comes to an ad read) and last night they flipped the script somewhat. Instead of former players joining Kevin Garnett on his Area 21 set, the former Timberwolves and Celtics legend was joined by media members who cover basketball and more.
Turner’s Casey Stern and Ros Gold-Onwude joined Garnett, as did two prominent personalities from outside TNT: ESPN’s Jemele Hill and Yahoo’s newsbreaking prodigy Shams Charnia.
It’s a packed ? for media night in #KGArea21!
Guests ?: @jemelehill, @ROSGO21, @CaseyStern and @ShamsCharania. pic.twitter.com/3a550whbik
— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) March 28, 2018
While the group was talking basketball throughout the night, we did get a little insight into Hill and Charania. Of course, Jemele Hill has been in the headlines for months after her public feud with Donald Trump, the controversy that ensued, and her departure from (and the ultimate demise of) SC6. In the above clip, Hill joked that she had the shortest SportsCenter tenure in ESPN history.
In the following clip, Hill says that what she experienced in the national media and the crosshairs of the President of the United States did not compare to the worst she saw growing up as an adolescent.
“My most scrutinized day as a professional does not compare to the worst day I’ve ever seen growing up.” – @jemelehill#KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/E3LUavrSmo
— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) March 28, 2018
Charania has emerged as maybe the second-most prominent newsbreaker in the NBA behind former Yahoo scribe and current ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski. There’s even been a bit of fun derived from the competition between the two when it comes to breaking NBA news.
Here, the rest of the set is amazed that Shams is only 23 and how he became a national media figure in the NBA even through his school days at Loyola Chicago.
“Wait, you’re 23?”@ShamsCharania explains how he handled breaking @NBA news while being a student and young reporter. #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/aov63HzzEw
— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) March 28, 2018
Naturally, as a Loyola grad, Shams also talked about the school’s Cinderella run to the Final Four and his perspective on the Ramblers and Sister Jean. And Ros Gold-Onwude talked about her experience with Sister Jean reporting on the Ramblers’ games earlier in the tournament.
“It’s genuine and it’s much deserved. Nice things happen to nice people.” @ShamsCharania talks Sister Jean’s contributions to the @RamblersMBB program from the perspective of a former student. #KGArea21 pic.twitter.com/ANLEAHvFbT
— KG’s Area 21 (@KGArea21) March 28, 2018
Seeing these media people open up to KG in new ways was maybe more interesting than seeing ex-players trying to do play-by-play. Especially with the crossover of having people from different networks appear. Hopefully, it’s something we see in the future more often.
