March 29--Cleveland Cavaliers beat reporter Brian Windhorst looks like he nodded off during a live ESPN broadcast, but Windhorst implied in a tweet Tuesday that he was simply looking down at his phone.
"SportsCenter" anchor Cari Champion was discussing how Stephen Curry compares to fellow NBA guard Russell Westbrook when she asked Windhorst for his input, but Windhorst appeared to close his eyes and didn't respond for several seconds.
Just as Champion broke the silence to say the network was experiencing "technical difficulties," Windhorst began to answer.
Windhorst implied in a tweet that he was looking down to read his phone. "When @AdamSchefter looks at his phone on TV he gets endorsement deals. When I do people think I have narcolepsy. #SportsCenterProblems," he tweeted.
An ESPN spokesperson flatly denied that Windhorst fell asleep in an email to the Tribune Tuesday afternoon. "Brian did not fall asleep," the spokesperson said. "He was looking at his phone."
plthompson@tribpub.com
