(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Former NBA coach Jeff Van Gundy was yet another casualty of ESPN’s layoffs.
As many as 20 on-air personalities making over seven figures were laid off by the sports giant, including the 16-year veteran.
Needless to say, that decision rubbed plenty of people the wrong way, and that includes former NBA coach George Karl.
Karl — who’s never hesitated to take big shots and make some bold statements on Twitter — threw shade at Mark Jackson by criticizing Van Gundy’s firing.
Letting go of JVG but not the guy who left Jokic out of his top 5 MVP candidates??
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) June 30, 2023
Per the former coach, ESPN should’ve fired the guy who didn’t include Nikola Jokic in his top-five MVP candidates, which was obviously — and now infamously — Jackson.
Notably, Karl’s dislike for Jackson is nothing new.
Back in 2013 when he was still coaching the Denver Nuggets, Karl implied that Andre Iguodala had been serving as Jackson’s “mole” and double agent, stating that Iggy had given the Golden State Warriors coach some inside information about their plans for Stephen Curry.
Karl said that he saw some “fishy” things with “a bad odor” on tape, and Jackson had also stated that he had someone on the inside letting him know that they were actively trying to hurt Steph.
Whether that’s true or not, the fact that Iguodala went on to sign with the Warriors just the next season made things a little more suspicious.
For now, however, it seems like Jackson’s job with ESPN is safe, and there’s still no word on who’s going to replace Van Gundy, with JJ Redick, Richard Jefferson, and Doris Burke as the alleged frontrunners.
The post Former NBA Coach Slams ESPN For Letting Go Of Jeff Van Gundy appeared first on The Cold Wire.