• Loading stock data...
Friday, October 17, 2025

Doris Burke Begins Historic NBA Broadcast Role

  • Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson exited longtime posts, setting the stage for Burke to become ESPN’s first female No. 1 TV analyst.
  • The stakes are high, as ESPN enters negotiations to maintain its NBA media rights.
Doris Burke
Melina Pizano / ESPN Images)

During the NBA offseason, ESPN, as it often does, reorganized its extensive team of analysts and announcers.

But in a surprising move, ESPN dumped Jeff Van Gundy then Mark Jackson from their longtime posts as lead game analysts alongside play-by-play announcer Mike Breen, setting the stage for Doris Burke and ex-NBA coach Doc Rivers to take over.

On Wednesday night, Burke will begin her post as the network’s first female No. 1 TV analyst by calling the Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks. Next summer, she will make more sports media history as the first female TV analyst to call the NBA Finals. 

Over the decades, ESPN has cycled through dozens of personalities on “NBA Countdown,” including ex-analysts Bill Simmons and Magic Johnson and former hosts Maria Taylor and Michelle Beadle. 

But ESPN brass had never messed with its No. 1 NBA broadcast team. Before they were pink-slipped, Van Gundy and Jackson had called a record 17 and 15 NBA Finals, respectively, with Breen. 

Burke, a Hall of Fame broadcaster, has covered the NBA and WNBA as an analyst and sideline reporter for over 30 years at ESPN. Now, she will be part of the network’s new broadcast “A” team, along with Rivers, Breen, and sideline reporter Lisa Salters.

The stakes couldn’t be higher for Burke and ESPN.

The network has tipped off billion-dollar negotiations to retain the NBA media rights it has held with TNT since 2002. 

Plenty of potential suitors are eager for a crack at the league, ranging from streaming giant Amazon Prime Video to former broadcast partner NBC Sports.

ESPN’s head of event and studio production David Roberts said Burke deserved the promotion.  

She was previously the network’s first female NBA game analyst in 2017. Three years later, she became the first woman to call the NBA Finals on ESPN Radio.

“People will say, well, this is a trailblazing move. You’re absolutely right. But the only way that any trailblazer is successful, whether it’s an African American or a woman or anyone, is based on the results and their performance,” noted Roberts on a press call. “And Doris Burke’s performance and results are unprecedented and unmatched in this industry.”

Her new colleague Rivers has admired her TV work from afar. “I like how serious she is about basketball. Loves it; it’s her passion,” said Rivers, who led the Celtics to the 2008 NBA Championship.

Doris Burke

It’s Official: Doris Burke Joins ESPN’s No. 1 NBA Announce Team

Burke will be the first woman to call a major men’s championship.
August 14, 2023

As NJ.com noted, Burke was the first woman to announce a Big East men’s basketball game on TV, the first woman to do a New York Knicks game on TV or radio, and the first to become an NBA analyst on national TV.

Sports TV colleagues like Bonnie Bernstein widely respect her. 

“Doris is a glowing example of what ‘the possible’ looks like when your passion drowns out noise,” said Bernstein, the former ESPN and CBS Sports reporter turned founder of Walk Swiftly Productions.

“From the gritty, youngest-of-eight growing up in Manasquan, New Jersey — a basketball junkie in an era when playing sports wasn’t a ‘cool’ thing for girls to do — to this. Sitting courtside as an NBA Finals analyst. It’s just the latest trail Doris has blazed in a career full of them.”

But it’s not easy being Burke, either. 

Every time the pioneering analyst calls a game, there’s the usual legion of online critics screaming how dare she, a woman, call a men’s pro sport. 

Bomani Jones told Front Office Sports that Burke has an ace up her sleeve. Unlike NFL or MLB analysts, critics can’t wail “she never played” the game. 

As a player, Burke was an All-American point guard at Providence College. She left the school as the all-time assists leader of the Friars women’s basketball team — and was twice named to the All-Big East team.

“Basketball is not gender-specific,” Jones added. “Doris Burke played basketball. Doris Burke has been around basketball. There is no plausible argument that anybody can make for why a woman would not be as capable of doing this job than any man would be.”

“With Doris, there’s zero novelty factor involved in her doing basketball. She is a basketball player who knows a lot about basketball; talking about basketball. Her name just happens to be Doris. That’s it,” said the host of “The Right Time with Bomani Jones.” 

“There’s nothing else you can point to. And so I think that’s going to make it for her, a very easy transition into this, at least in terms of dealing with the Neanderthals who always struggle with women getting to places that they’re not used to.” 

Of course, Burke’s turn on the NBA Finals will be short-lived if ESPN cannot maintain its media rights.

She previously told Front Office Sports she’s “pulling like hell” for ESPN to retain the NBA’s top broadcast package, including exclusive NBA Finals coverage on sister Disney network ABC.

ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said the network has already opened negotiations with the NBA.

“We have a fantastic relationship with the league. It’s critical that we get this deal done,” Pitaro said at the IMG Summit at Soho Farmhouse outside London. “We see the value in that property across our various platforms — not just ABC, of course, ESPN. We expect that deal to be much more forward-thinking, forward-leaning and progressive, so we expect a significant direct-to-consumer component.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Dave Checketts

Ex-Knicks President: When David Stern Accused Me of Skirting Cap

The Knicks walked away clean when accused of cap circumvention in the 1990s.
Apr 11, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of an NBA basketball and backyard and NBA logo before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Toronto Raptors at the American Airlines Center.

NBA Tries to Solve Fragmentation Issue It Helped Create

A new “Tap to Watch” feature will direct fans to live games.
Jun 15, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Second place Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen (1) sprays champagne on winner Mercedes driver George Russell (63) at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.

Apple Officially Taking F1 Rights From ESPN in $700M Deal

ESPN has broadcast F1 in the U.S. since 2018.
Oct 11, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Michigan Wolverines wide receiver Semaj Morgan (0) makes a catch for a first down in the first half against the USC Trojans at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Michigan Board Publicly Opposes Big Ten Investment Proposal

“The Big Ten does not need to be sold to save college sports.”

Featured Today

May 25, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Derek Jeter walks the red carpet on Sunday, May 25, 2025, ahead of the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The Players’ Tribune Is Still Kicking 11 Years Later

Founder Derek Jeter is still closely involved in the publication.
Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) celebrates with her teammates after her last second shot to take the lead 90-88 against the Phoenix Mercury in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix on Oct. 8, 2025.
exclusive
October 10, 2025

Standoff Over WNBA’s Future Has Dominated Finals

CBA negotiations have stolen the spotlight from the Aces’ dominant performance.
Paul Cartier
October 5, 2025

Sports Organists Are Still Thriving in the Era of Raucous Arena Music

“When they walk out and they see a real organ guy, it’s like, ‘Wow.’”
Sep 27, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers center fielder Jackson Chourio (11) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the sixth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field.
October 4, 2025

Milwaukee Moneyball: Brewers Are Beating MLB’s Deeper Pockets

Milwaukee is holding its own against big-budget competitors.
Mar 12, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; General view of ESPN broadcast camera during a game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena.

ESPN’s New NBA Segment Resists Hot Takes

LeBron James tweeted in favor of the new segment.
Oct 10, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) celebrates with teammates after game four of the 2025 WNBA Finals at Mortgage Matchup Center.
October 14, 2025

WNBA Finals Draws 1.5M Viewers, Second-Highest Series on ESPN

The four-game series averaged 1.5 million viewers.
Aug 30, 2025; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Brandon Inniss (1) attempts to make a catch over Texas Longhorns defensive back Graceson Littleton (29) in the first half at Ohio Stadium.
October 16, 2025

SEC Games Help ABC Dominate College Football Ratings at Midseason

Texas–Ohio State on Fox remains the most-watched game of the season.
Sponsored

How Jenny Just Is Shaping the Future of Sports Ownership

Jenny Just on bringing her investment experience to sports ownership.
MLS
October 14, 2025

MLS Publishes Unchecked AI-Generated Game Recaps

Humans are not reviewing the articles for accuracy.
Micah Parsons
exclusive
October 14, 2025

NFL Scorigami Creator Blames Glitches on Twitter Platform Changes

The bot has been glitching all NFL season, and fans have noticed.
Sep 5, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Novak Djokovic of Serbia embraces after their match in the semifinal of the men’s singles at the US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
October 13, 2025

Six Kings Slam Returns With Record $6M Prize, Netflix Deal

The Six Kings Slam is held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Mar 5, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the NBA logo and NBA app logo and basketballs in front of the base during warms up before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Suns at the American Airlines Center.
October 13, 2025

NBA Will Take Over League Pass After WBD Divorce

The league now has full operational control of those media assets.