The coronavirus has changed our daily lives and changed the way we perform some of our everyday tasks. It may also change the way that TNT and ESPN’s NBA broadcasters do their jobs once the NBA season resumes on July 31.
Telecommunication capabilities have increased tremendously over the past 20 years, and with technological innovations, calling a game without actually sitting courtside is possible. NBA TV has been utilizing remote broadcasting capabilities for many of its productions, and we may see that expanded to the resumption of the NBA season next month.
Kevin Harlan, one of TNT’s most renowned voices, revealed that in an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio channel hosts Tom Byrne and Amin Elhassan. The interview and its contents were reported by The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch.
According to Harlan, the networks are likely to use remote-controlled broadcast cameras and remote playcalling, with the functions being performed from Turner Sports’ studio in Atlanta. He did, however, leave open the possibility that broadcasters would be on-site for the conference finals and NBA Finals.
“What I’ve heard from the folks at TNT is we will be in the studios in Atlanta and they will set up as close to possible a broadcast table like we would have courtside,” Harlan said. “We will have, I’m assuming, crowd noise pumped into our headsets. I think for the viewer, I don’t think it’s going to seem dramatically different… The one thing I have heard is that not until the conference finals would there be any consideration for broadcasters being in this setting.”
Although fans usually see and hear four members of the broadcast team, a successful game production requires dozens of staffers. From video producers to sound engineers and technology staffers, pulling off such a project requires a lot of bodies.
With the NBA wanting to reduce the number of individuals on-site, the limitation makes sense. Hopefully, the quality of the game-calling and viewer experience doesn’t suffer at all.
