We’re getting closer and closer to the Paris Olympics, which means NBC Sports is getting together its broadcasting crews for the 2024 games.
NBC Sports tabbed Noah Eagle as the basketball play-by-play voice last month, but the network had not yet announced who would join him in the broadcast booth. That changed Wednesday, as NBC announced that Dwyane Wade and LaChina Robinson would join Eagle to call Team USA men’s and women’s basketball games come July.
Wade launched The Why with Dwyane Wade podcast earlier this year but notably spent three seasons as part of TNT Sport’s NBA coverage before electing to leave the network in 2022. As The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand notes, this could be a grand opportunity for both NBC and Wade, as Comcast finds itself in the driver’s seat in acquiring the NBA rights. Wade would undoubtedly be an astute choice as the color commentator.
Dwyane Wade joining Noah Eagle on NBC’s men’s Olympic coverage.
Hmm, if NBC gets the NBA, Mike Tirico-Wade No. 1 team? 🤔
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) May 29, 2024
As for Robinson, she already has 15 years of WNBA coverage under her belt and also boasts 12 years of college basketball coverage. In 2009, she joined ESPN as a college basketball analyst and reporter. Her impressive career includes covering major sporting events like the NCAA Tournament, Women’s Final Four, WNBA Playoffs, Finals, and Drafts. Robinson’s experience extends beyond ESPN, having graced the screens of Turner and Fox networks for WNBA coverage. Currently, she lends her expertise as the analyst for the Atlanta Dream and calls select WNBA games on ESPN and NBA TV.
Kerith Burke and Zora Stephenson will serve as the sideline reporters in France for the first and second weeks, respectively.
“With this summer’s basketball tournaments expected to have the deepest pool of talented players and most competitive fields in any Olympics, we are thrilled that Dwyane and LaChina, each with more than a decade of experience at the sport’s highest level, will be alongside Noah to call the action. On the sidelines, we are excited to have Kerith and Zora, who have been courtside reporters for NBA champions,” said Rebecca Chatman, Vice President and Coordinating Producer of NBC Olympic production.
“I’m thrilled to join NBC Sports as a commentator for Team USA Men’s Basketball games,” said Wade. “The Olympics are the world’s greatest sporting competition with elite athletes competing at the highest level on the world’s largest stage. I have tremendous pride when I look back at my time competing as an Olympic athlete. I have the utmost respect for these players and their commitment to greatness. It will be an honor to witness their journey in person and share this special experience with viewers while we unite to celebrate their pursuit of the gold.”
“It’s surreal to think that I will be sitting in the analyst seat as our women’s national team competes for their unprecedented eighth consecutive gold medal,” said Robinson. “I am humbled by this opportunity to represent the rich history of women’s basketball on this monumental stage. Thank you to NBC Sports and all the remarkable women who have sat in this seat before me.”
Additionally, veteran broadcaster Bob Fitzgerald, a familiar voice to Golden State Warriors fans, brings his Olympic experience back to NBCUniversal. This marks his sixth time calling basketball for the network, having previously covered the games in London (2012) and Tokyo (2020).
