While he played the entirety of his NBA career for the Los Angeles Lakers, apparently Kobe Bryant often dreamed about the New York Knicks.
During a recent podcast appearance by Adrian Wojnarowski, the former ESPN senior insider spoke about the hypothetical. According to Woj, the late Bryant was “convinced” that he would eventually sign with the Knicks and play in Madison Square Garden.
Speaking on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast with longtime NBA star Carmelo Anthony, the legendary reporter said Bryant thought the Lakers would use the amnesty clause on him (likely around 2013). He apparently believed no team would claim him on waivers and he would sign a deal with the Knicks.
Woj added that Bryant would “fantasize” about Madison Square Garden.
Anthony revealed “that’s all he talked about” while discussing this unique scenario. According to Woj, meanwhile, the late Bryant “loved” Anthony and had many storied about guarding him on the court.
It is hard to imagine Bryant wearing anything but Purple and Golden, but it nearly happened and it would have assuredly changed basketball history (especially in Los Angeles and New York) forever.
What a scary moment for the NBA’s best news breaker.
Adrian Wojnarowski’s abrupt exit from ESPN and the NBA breaking news space, as a whole, caught a lot of people off guard.
Wojnarowski still seemed to be at the top of his game as the best newsbreaker in the NBA media sphere. He just…left. One day, he was still dropping Woj Bombs. The next, he’d retired. It came out of nowhere.
The news prompted everyone to wonder why he decided to exit so abruptly. Now, thanks to a Sports Illustrated profile of Wojnarowski, we know the answer. It was about his health.
The former ESPN insider was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year. In the profile, Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix describes the moment Wojnarowski received his diagnosis.
The scene is harrowing.
“There was a line in Woj’s retirement statement: Time isn’t in endless supply. “That was about the cancer,” he says. Last February, Wojnarowski went in for a physical. Blood tests revealed an elevated PSA, or prostate-specific antigen. His doctor sent him for an MRI. Nothing showed up. He took another PSA test. Still high. This time the doctor recommended a biopsy, which in March revealed early-stage cancer. He learned the news minutes before a remote appearance on NBA Countdown. Head foggy, he did the hit.”
Imagine having a job so demanding that still requires you to work just mere moments after you receive a terrifying diagnosis like the one Wojnarowski received. That’s a lot. It’s no wonder he walked away.
If that wasn’t enough, then it seems his family pushing him to walk away would’ve gotten the job done. Words from his son, Ben, particularly seemed to stick with Woj.
“Just before the NBA draft, Woj called Ben. He was leaning toward quitting and wanted to get his son’s take on it. Ben was blunt. “People think your job is great,” Ben said. “I think your job f—ing sucks. Retire—and go travel with Mom.”
That’ll do it. Woj made the right decision. Family and health should come first.
In the aftermath of Woj stepping away from his duties as a reporter, Charania was the obvious choice as his successor and was the first to break some of the biggest stories in recent weeks — including the Karl-Anthony Towns trade to the New York Knicks.
I am honored to join ESPN as the company’s Senior NBA Insider. I can’t wait to be part of an incredible group of colleagues at ESPN and serve the sports audience worldwide. pic.twitter.com/sBDFGIpkb6
Even if the hiring of Charania is not particularly stunning, it is still an important decision from all parties involved and one that will impact many people across the sports media industry as well as basketball fans around the world.
ESPN baseball insider Jeff Passan is a top candidate for the job, along with Charania, according to a new report from The Athletic on Saturday. The report cited six sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Passan, 44, followed the same path as Wojnarowski by first becoming a top insider at Yahoo Sports before moving to ESPN. Passan makes in the neighborhood of $1 million per year, according to sources briefed on his contract. Wojnarowski left $20 million on his deal when he left journalism to become the general manager of the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team. Wojnarowski was earning around $7 million per season.
Besides the potential for greater earnings for Passan, ESPN has a long-term relationship with the NBA as it just signed an 11-year extension to be the home of the NBA Finals. Meanwhile, ESPN’s marriage to baseball is in a tenuous stage. It has an opt-out in its current contract, which is for $540 million per season, that it is expected to use or threaten to use by the end of next season. While ESPN could stay in business with MLB, it is not guaranteed. ESPN has an interest in MLB’s local rights, which could be where the two sides come together.
Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win’s basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey. Now, here’s Prince J. Grimes.
What’s going on, y’all. Welcome back to Layup Lines. I apologize for using such an old meme reference in the headline to get you here, but it is kinda fitting considering we were probably using that meme the last time Ben Simmons was good.
OK. That was mean. But hear me out.
In the three years since his last All-Star season in 2020-21, Simmons has played a grand total of 57 games. Some of that is due to injuries, some of it is because he never fully recovered from what happened against the Atlanta Hawks. Whatever the reasons, it’s been a long time since we’ve had enough evidence to believe he can be a good NBA player again.
Unless, of course, you’re into those offseason workout videos athletes love to post of themselves working on things they never actually do in games. Then, believers of the Brooklyn Nets forward have the most promising evidence yet of his impending bounce-back after four years of trying.
Simmons has been in the gym with renowned trainer Chris Brickley, and the results look about as good as you could expect for someone with good editing and no defense in front of him.
I hope I’m wrong. I would love to see Simmons be good again. He’s only 28. And Brickley is really selling it, responding to another skeptic on X by saying Simmons “is better now than his All Star seasons.”
That’s saying a lot.
Thanks bro but Ben is healthy, moving very well, he is better now than his All Star seasons. I’ve never co-signed a player that didn’t prove it when their season started. Trust me on this one. https://t.co/B2r0Z0UKtX
At the same time, the problems with Simmons have been just as much about his physical breaking down as his mental. Back issues limited him to just 15 games last season. It’s the third straight year he’s been sidelined by back problems. Brickley can’t fix that.
That’s before we get to his shaken confidence. Though he averaged a career-high 11.9 rebounds per 36 minutes in those 15 games last season, and his 8.6 assists per 36 minutes were the second-best of his career, he was clearly a more tentative offensive player. Yes, he shot a career-high 58% from the field, but it was on a career-low 7.4 attempts per game — a number that’s dipped each year he’s played.
Even if he somehow gets over that mental hurdle, how much have the injuries and time away from the floor impacted his mobility and defensive abilities?
I don’t know the answer to any of that, but I know this video doesn’t bring me any closer to knowing either. So, I’ll just wait to see Simmons in a real game before I believe he’s back. You probably should too.
Adrian Wojnarowski retires
The Vertical
You’ve surely heard by now, but ESPN NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski announced his retirement this morning.
Our guy Mike Sykes contextualized the news about as well as anyone could in today’s The Morning Win: It’s the end of an era.
“Of course, I’m happy for him. He’s worked hard and has earned the right to enjoy the fruits of his labor.
But at the same time, Woj was one of the defining characters of the NBA basketball era I loved the most. His reporting shaped the zeitgeist. He didn’t just break news stories – he changed how the league was covered. Nobody scooped things the way he scooped things.
For so long, in the early aughts going into the 2010s, following Woj on Twitter was like being an NBA insider yourself. The platform was still young — everyone in real life wasn’t on it. But Woj used the platform as a news-breaking forum, so you’d have the scoop before all your friends did. It was almost like you were breaking the news yourself.
It’s not hyperbole to say that the NBA doesn’t become the league it currently is without the work Woj did covering it. He’s an essential character in the league’s story over the last decade and change in the same way an NBA superstar would be.”
Many speculate that the job could go to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, a former protege of Woj who worked alongside him during their time at Yahoo. But if ESPN doesn’t make that hire, who else could get the nod?
There are some tremendously talented and well-connected folks on the NBA desk at ESPN like Ramona Shelburne and Zach Lowe, but many of them are doing excellent work and a change of direction may not make a ton of sense.
Meanwhile, here are a few other likely internal and external candidates.
1. Brian Windhorst, ESPN
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
If the decision makers at ESPN decide to keep the job internal, a likely option is veteran reporter Brian Windhorst. Already the host of The Hoop Collectivepodcast and a regular on their TV programming, Windhorst is no stranger to breaking news and creating viral moments.
2. Chris Haynes, Turner Sports (previously)
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The most logical external hire aside from Charania is absolutely Chris Haynes, who has enjoyed a successful career both as a writer and on TV. He has had various stops along the way, including at ESPN, and he is currently a sports media free agent after his contract elapsed with TNT. Haynes is one of the most “likely” people to get a look from ESPN, per Front Office Sports.
3. Tim Bontemps, ESPN
(Photo by Bryan Steffy/Getty Images for AT&T)
Aside from Windhorst, another legitimate candidate who could get an internal look from ESPN is their colleague Tim Bontemps. A longtime national NBA reporter for TheWashington Post, he has done very well during his time at the Worldwide Leader. Additionally, like Woj, he also attended St. Bonaventure and often gets retweets from Wojnarowski.
4. Marc Stein, The Stein Line
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Perhaps a reunion with ESPN is unlikely, especially after Marc Stein recently announced that he would join AllCity’s Dallas vertical. But it is clear that he is one of the most established reporters in the industry, especially with the stellar work he has done for his Substack. He is absolutely worthy of at least some consideration for a job like this one if they want a trusted veteran.
5. Jake Fischer, Yahoo Sports
One more name to add to the list of potential candidates ESPN assuredly has on its radar is Jake Fischer. He has made a rapid rise from Sports Illustrated to Bleacher Report and now at Yahoo, he is widely considered one of the best younger reporters covering the league at large. Even if he started out in a smaller role and not one as a “replacement” for Woj, it would be a valuable addition for someone capable of both breaking news and writing engaging longform.
Adrian Wojnarowski left fans with one last Woj Bomb – his retirement from ESPN and news reporting.
ESPN Senior NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski is retiring from his position as one of the leading news breakers in professional sports to become the general manager for the men’s basketball program at St. Bonaventure, according to a press release from the team.
“I’m thrilled and humbled to return to St. Bonaventure with an opportunity to serve the university, Coach Mark Schmidt and our elite Atlantic 10 men’s basketball program,” Wojnarowski said. “In these changing times of college sports, I’m eager to join a championship program that combines high-level basketball, national television exposure, pro preparation and NIL opportunities with an intimate, supportive educational environment.”
Wojnarowski, who graduated from St. Bonaventure in 1991, has been a major benefactor to the basketball program for many years and wanted to take a step back from the hectic lifestyle that is 24/7 news reporting and give back to the program that helped foster his love of basketball.
“This craft transformed my life, but I’ve decided to retire from ESPN and the news industry,” Wojnarowski wrote. “I understand the commitment required in my role and it’s an investment that I’m no longer driven to make. Time isn’t in endless supply and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful.”
General Manager roles have become common for football and men’s basketball programs across the country, with those in position helping to navigate the transfer portal, NIL collectives, recruiting, and overall fundraising – all roles Wojnarowski expects to fill for the Bonnies.
“I’m hopeful to share with members of our community some best practices learned from the most successful franchises and minds in the NBA and committed to opening doors globally for our players both on and off the court,” Wojnarowski said.
The Bonnies have made the NCAA Tournament three times in the Mark Schmidt era dating back to 2007. They were ranked No. 23 in the 2021-22 preseason AP Poll, and last year went 20-13 and 9-9 in conference play.
But before that, his final tweet about the NBA was breaking the news that Isaac Okoro, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, re-signed with the Cavaliers as a restricted free agent. It was the final news he broke during his time with ESPN.
While it wasn’t the biggest news he broke during his career, it was the last piece of reporting we got from Woj before he switched to join the front office for the St Bonaventure Bonnies.
ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski shocked the NBA world this morning by announcing his decision to retire from the news industry, which could easily qualify as the biggest of all Woj bombs. Wojnarowski has been at the forefront of NBA news-breaking …
ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski shocked the NBA world this morning by announcing his decision to retire from the news industry, which could easily qualify as the biggest of all Woj bombs.
Wojnarowski has been at the forefront of NBA news-breaking for over a decade, his tweets often sending shockwaves across the basketball world.
With no more forthcoming, we decided to rank those with the biggest impact based on the amount of retweets.
