ESPN’s NBA succession plan: Hiring Doc Rivers, laying off Mark Jackson and promoting Doris Burke
Mark Jackson is out at ESPN, The Post has learned.
Jackson joins Jeff Van Gundy in being laid off by ESPN after the two had been Mike Breen’s co-analysts on the NBA Finals.
They are expected to be replaced by Doris Burke and Doc Rivers.
In the wake of Van Gundy’s layoff last month, ESPN set its eyes on making Burke the first woman TV analyst on the NBA Finals and hiring Rivers to join Hall of Fame play-by-player Mike Breen. The deals are not finalized, but are quickly moving in that direction.
ESPN declined comment.
ESPN was looking at keeping Jackson as part of a “B” team with Mark Jones. However, network executives really like JJ Redick and Richard Jefferson as game analysts and are keen on assigning them better games. That left Jackson in potentially the third team, even though ESPN doesn’t make specific declarations.
ESPN also increasingly came to the realization that Jackson’s effectiveness was tied to Van Gundy, who had established himself as one of the best game analysts in sports.
Without Van Gundy, ESPN didn’t think Jackson would offer as much. He only had two years remaining on his contract. Jackson confirmed the news of his departure, according to Peter Vescey’s Twitter account.
The former Knicks coach was a victim of ESPN’s talent layoffs. While Van Gundy was one of the best game analysts in sports, top ESPN executives were wary of his desire to coach again.
Van Gundy was also critical of the NBA and its officiating, which the NBA has expressed disappointment with over the years and even this season, according to sources. However, there is no evidence of an edict from the NBA to make a change.
While ESPN could have simply put Burke in for Van Gundy, there was a strong feeling that the combination of Jackson and Burke would not have the same chemistry as Jackson and Van Gundy.
Unlike Van Gundy, Burke and Rivers are popular at the league offices. The league has always been a fan of Rivers in the broadcast booth.
In 2004, Rivers teamed with Al Michaels on the NBA Finals. Michaels has told a story of then commissioner David Stern calling Rivers up and informing Rivers he was taking the job with ABC/ESPN. Rivers has very close relationships with the many in the media, as he counts Michaels and Breen among his good friends.
With Rivers, like Van Gundy, ESPN faces the possibility he could return to coaching. Rivers was fired by the Sixers this offseason and they reportedly owe him $16 million over the next two years. Rivers was a candidate for the Suns’ head coaching job, but did not get it.
Everything to know about ESPN Layoffs
On Friday, ESPN began the latest round of its layoffs, with several big names among the 20 or so on-air personalities being let go.
Network stalwarts Jeff Van Gundy, Max Kellerman, Keyshawn Johnson, Suzy Kolber, Matt Hasselbeck, Steve Young and Todd McShay were some of the biggest names let go of by ESPN.
- ESPN laying off around 20 on-air stars
- Basketball world shocked by ESPN ditching Jeff Van Gundy
- Suzy Kolber let go after 27 years at ESPN
It marked the third round of layoffs by the “Worldwide Leader,” with the previous two focusing on behind-the-scenes workers.
The massive layoffs come as part of mandates from parent company Disney, which announced earlier this year that around 7,000 jobs would be eliminated.
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While ESPN made these moves on its own, a by-product of those decisions is that they will likely make NBA commissioner Adam Silver and leagues executives happy. ESPN is expected to keep the NBA in the next round of billion-dollar deals. With ESPN’s contract up in two years, it does not hurt to please the NBA.
And, while breaking up the historic crew of Van Gundy, Jackson and Breen was odd, the new confab of Breen, Burke and Rivers could be good.
