2022 NBA Finals Presented By YouTubeTV Exclusively on ABC: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics Starts June 2
· 20th Consecutive Season ESPN Has Produced NBA Finals on ABC
· Prolific NBA Finals Broadcast Booth Continues Record-Setting Run: Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson, with Lisa Salters Reporting
· NBA Finals: Celebrating 75 - ESPN2 Alternate Presentation for Game 1 to Celebrate NBA's 75th Anniversary Season
· ESPN's Largest On-Site Presence to Date: First NBA Finals for New NBA Countdown and NBA Today Teams, Plus Hoop Streams, SportsCenter, First Take, Pardon The Interruption, Jalen & Jacoby, ESPN Social Media
· Innovative Viewing Options on ESPN App Include SkyCam and Above The Rim Cam
The 2022 NBA Finals Presented By YouTubeTV will air exclusively on ABC, beginning with Game 1 on Thursday, June 2, at 9 p.m. ET as the Golden State Warriors and three-time NBA Champion Stephen Curry host the Boston Celtics and Jayson Tatum. This marks the 20th consecutive year ESPN will produce the NBA Finals on ABC, dating back to the 2002-03 event. All NBA Finals games will air on ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes and the ESPN App and Game 1 will include an ESPN2 alternate presentation called NBA Finals: Celebrating 75.
ESPN's prolific NBA Finals broadcast team will continue its record-setting run this year as Curt Gowdy Media Award-winning play-by-play voice Mike Breen calls the action on ABC. Breen will be joined by analysts Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson, with Lisa Salters reporting and officiating expert Steve Javie available from the NBA Replay Center. The trio of Breen, Van Gundy and Jackson will call their 14th NBA Finals together, expanding upon the record for the most in NBA history as a trio. Salters returns to the NBA Finals as sideline reporter for the second time, having previously held the role in 2006.
More broadcast records:
· Mike Breen will call his 17th NBA Finals, the most for play-by-play commentator;
· Jeff Van Gundy will call his 16th as analyst, the most for a television analyst;
· Mark Jackson will call his 14th as analyst, the most for a Black game analyst in any major sports championship event.
Date Time (ET) Game Platform(s)
Thu, June 2 9 p.m. Game 1: Boston Celtics vs. Golden State Warriors ABC, ESPN2, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Sun, June 5 8 p.m. Game 2: Boston Celtics vs. Golden State Warriors ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Wed, June 8 9 p.m. Game 3: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Fri, June 10 9 p.m. Game 4: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Mon, June 13 9 p.m. *Game 5: Boston Celtics vs. Golden State Warriors ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Thu, June 16 9 p.m. *Game 6: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
Sun, June 19 8 p.m. *Game 7: Boston Celtics vs. Golden State Warriors ABC, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN App
*if necessary
Tim Corrigan, ESPN Vice President of Production, will continue to lead game production for the NBA Finals on ABC. Corrigan has been a part of all 20 of ESPN's NBA Finals productions.
NBA Finals: Celebrating 75 Alternate Presentation
ESPN2 will televise NBA Finals: Celebrating 75, a special alternate presentation for NBA Finals Game 1 on Thursday, June 2, at 9 p.m. The telecast, hosted by Michael Eaves, will emanate from ESPN's Seaport District Studios in New York, N.Y. and will include special commentary, graphics, packages and footage of the NBA's rich 75-year history. New ESPN NBA analyst CJ McCollum will make his debut alongside veteran analyst Tim Legler. The team will provide insights on Game 1 and reflections on the NBA's 75-year history. The trio will be joined by several special guests, including Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Julius "Dr. J" Erving. NBA Finals: Celebrating 75 will also include content from ESPN Marketing's NBA Finals Game 1 Watch Party, taking place atop the Seaport District Studios that night.
Cameras and coverage highlights:
· 55 total cameras;
· 17 high frame rate Super Slo Mo Cameras;
· 2 RF Shallow Depth Of Field Mirrorless Gimbal Steadi Cameras;
· 1 1080P Skycam;
· Multiple virtual overlay cameras, including Skycam;
· New enhanced cameras with Augmented Reality Graphics and trackmen optical tracking;
· Live drone coverage, including with virtual overlay.
ESPN will offer innovative viewing options via the ESPN App throughout the NBA Finals. Fans will have the opportunity to choose both SkyCam and Above The Rim Cam options for unique views of the action, in addition to the traditional game broadcast. The ESPN App will also offer a pregame Layup Lines viewing option.
First NBA Finals for New NBA Countdown, NBA Today Teams
NBA Countdown Presented By Door Dash, ABC's NBA Finals pregame show, will air 30 minutes prior to all games, starting at 8:30 p.m., with the exceptions of Game 2 and a potential Game 7, which begin one hour earlier. The show will also air from 8-8:30 p.m. on ESPN for Games 3-6 prior to the ABC broadcasts. NBA Countdown is comprised of several of ESPN's highest-profile commentators, including Mike Greenberg, Stephen A. Smith, Curt Cowdy Media Award-winner Mike Wilbon and Jalen Rose with contributions from ESPN Senior NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski. This season marks Rose's 12th consecutive year as NBA Finals pregame and halftime analyst. The Game 1 edition of the show will include Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson joining the team live, on site.
NBA Today, ESPN's weekday NBA show hosted by Malika Andrews, will travel to the NBA Finals for weekday shows. Andrews, ESPN NBA reporter and host, is joined by a popular team of analysts and writers, including former high-profile players such as Kendrick Perkins, Richard Jefferson, Vince Carter, current WNBA star Chiney Ogwumike and ESPN Senior Writer Zach Lowe. NBA Today generally airs at 3 p.m. on ESPN. It will air on ESPN2 this Thursday, June 2. NBA Today made its debut at the start of the 2021-22 regular season and is making its first appearance at the NBA Finals.
Hoop Streams, ESPN's digital NBA pregame show led by host and reporter Cassidy Hubbarth, will be courtside throughout the NBA Finals, starting 60 minutes before tipoff. Hoop Streams airs on ESPN's Twitter, YouTube and Instagram platforms, as well as the ESPN App. Hubbarth will be joined by a cast of commentators, including Monica McNutt, Gary Striewski, David Jacoby, Christine Williamson, Richard Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins, Chiney Ogwumike, and more.
NBA Finals on ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio will serve as the national audio home of the 2022 NBA Finals. Marc Kestecher will describe the action over the airwaves with P.J. Carlesimo and Curt Gowdy Media Award-winning analyst Doris Burke, with Monica McNutt and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude reporting. This marks Burke's third NBA Finals on ESPN Radio. In 2022 Burke became the first woman to serve as an NBA Finals game analyst on any platform. Kevin Winter will serve as the pregame and halftime host on ESPN Radio. Audio from ESPN Radio's NBA Finals coverage is available to stream via the ESPN App.
CJ McCollum Joins ESPN
On Monday, ESPN announced that New Orleans Pelicans star, and current NBPA President CJ McCollum has joined ESPN as an NBA analyst. He will appear across ESPN platforms on a year-long basis, while active with the Pelicans. His role will include development of a new podcast, game and studio analysis. For more information, visit ESPN Press Room.
ESPN will offer its most comprehensive on-site NBA Finals coverage to date, with content appearing across platforms throughout the NBA Finals. On-site platforms include:
· SportsCenter;
· First Take;
· Pardon The Interruption;
· Jalen & Jacoby;
· ESPN social media: Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, SportsCenter on Snapchat, Facebook.
ESPN.com will have several reporters and writers on site documenting the NBA Finals, including Adrian Wojnarowski, Kevin Arnovitz, Brian Windhorst, Tim Bontemps, Kendra Andrews, Ohm Youngmisuk, Zach Lowe, Kirk Goldsberry, Tim Keown, Marc Spears and Liz Merril. Content can be found at ESPN.com's NBA Playoffs special section here: NBA Playoffs.
NBA 75: Game Changers
ESPN, in conjunction with Boardwalk Pictures and Station 10, will televise a one-hour film on Tuesday, May 31, at 7 p.m. as part of its NBA 75 celebration series. Game Changers, featuring narration by Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Julius "Dr. J" Erving, will focus on 15 players from the NBA's 75 greatest players list. The group will include six guards, six forwards and three centers that did the most to transform the NBA from era to era.
The NBA Finals will so be available in Spanish on ESPN Deportes. All NBA Finals content and programming is available to stream on the ESPN App.
The 2022 NBA Finals marks the sixth appearance by the Warriors and the third appearance by the Celtics during ESPN's 20 seasons producing the event.
ESPN Marketing Celebrates NBA Finals
ESPN marketing is supporting the NBA Finals in a variety of ways. Ahead of Game 1 the award-winning Champion Black Businesses campaign will be brought back for a third year, and there will be a Game 1 watch party and concert live from The Rooftop at Pier 17. Additionally, ESPN and the NBA are creating victory goggles to celebrate the end of a historic NBA season.
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