(Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images for ESPN)
The player-to-analyst pipeline is alive and well, especially at ESPN where it seems like a new recently-retired NBA or NFL player pops up behind the microphone nearly every week to the point where it’s hard to keep track of all of them.
One of the stalwarts is up for a new deal, and a recent report suggests that he is currently in the negotiation process with ESPN to keep him around long-term.
According to the New York Post and Awful Announcing, longtime analyst Tim Legler is negotiating a new ESPN deal, with the report saying “NBA fans worried they might lose longtime ESPN analyst Tim Legler when SportsCenter host Scott Van Pelt’s season-ending shout out to Legler was construed as a farewell, but it appears that in fact Legler is working on a new contract with the worldwide leader and could see an expanded role as a game analyst in the near future.”
Tim Legler is negotiating a new contract with ESPN, per @awfulannouncing & @nypost
“NBA fans worried they might lose longtime ESPN analyst Tim Legler when SportsCenter host Scott Van Pelt’s season-ending shout out to Legler was construed as a farewell, but it appears that in… pic.twitter.com/L0CuTgtXTM
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 26, 2024
Legler is one of the best in the business and has been with ESPN since 2000, so it would be jarring to see him with another network at this stage in his career.
Van Pelt’s shoutout did feel like a potential goodbye, but after losing JJ Redick to the Lakers, ESPN needs to pull out all the stops to keep Legler.
This network can’t simply be Stephen A. Smith yelling at whoever is sitting across from him on a given day.
Guys like Legler built this company into the sports media giant that it is, and he should be rewarded for his efforts and his continued excellence.
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