ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan has emerged as a candidate to switch beats and replace Adrian Wojnarowski’s NBA duties.
Earlier this month, the iconic NBA insider retired from his duties and left journalism completely to become the general manager of the men’s basketball program at his alma mater, St. Bonaventure.
In the wake of Wojnarowski’s departure, Passan is being considered to become ESPN’s NBA lead news breaker, six anonymous sources briefed on the discussion told The Athletic.
While the replacement is not yet concrete, ESPN has other NBA insiders Ramona Shelburne, Brian Windhorst, and Tim Bontemps on their payroll.
Wojnarowski’s former mentee and The Athletic NBA Insider Shams Charania is another top candidate for the job. ESPN declined the Athletic’s request for a comment.
Passan followed the same path as Wojnarowski by becoming a top insider at Yahoo Sports before jumping to ESPN. Passan is reportedly making around $1million a year.
On the other hand, Wojnarowski left $20m on his contract with ESPN to take a $7m-per-season deal with his alma mater.
Besides potentially getting a pay raise, his supposed role change comes as ESPN and the NBA agreed to an 11-year extension for the network to host the NBA Finals.
While basketball continues to thrive in the Worldwide Leader in Sports, their MLB partnership is in a tenuous stage. While ESPN could stay in the MLB business, longevity is not guaranteed. It has an opt-out in its current contract, which is for $540m per season that they’re expected to use or threaten to use by the end of next season.
Should Passan trade the dirt for the court, ESPN has other baseball insiders Buster Olney and Jesse Rogers. According to The Athletic’s sources, Passan is aware of the interest but remains undecided.
Charania, whose contract with The Athletic is up, is also gaining interest from new NBA rightsholder NBC, according to the sources. FanDuelTV would also like to continue with the NBA insider.
Charania formerly worked for Stadium and recently signed to add his voice to NBA 2k.
While The Athletic hopes to retain Charania, he has the backing of Pat McAfee at ESPN, as he regularly appears on the latter’s show.
‘We’re not at all surprised by the interest in Shams, whose indispensable coverage of the NBA and its key players continues to set the pace,’ Steven Ginsberg, executive editor of The Athletic, said in a statement. ‘We’re proud to have him as our colleague and are committed to ensuring he stays with The Athletic for years to come.’
