Marques Johnson has always had a connection between Los Angeles and Milwaukee. Whether it’s been on the court as a highly decorated high school and college player, a multi-time NBA All-Star, or in the broadcast booth as one of the game’s best analysts, his career has circled from his California home to the Midwest (and…
By Ray LeBov
Ray is a co-Founder of TBW and frequent contributor. He has a B.A. from Yale University and J.D. from the University of Southern California and is the owner of Ray LeBov and Associates lobbying and consulting firm as well as Capitol Seminars. He is currently Executive Director of the Association for Professional Basketball Research (i.e. the world’s' pre-eminent professional basketball historians organization) since 2010. He is the founder, publisher, curator and editor of Basketball Intelligence (BI), including a daily email of the best 20-25 NBA-related internet stories as well as original content and podcasts.
Meet Marques Johnson: From L.A. to Milwaukee and Back – Part 1
Marques Johnson has always had a connection between Los Angeles and Milwaukee. Whether it’s been on the court as a highly decorated high school and college player, as well as a multi-time NBA All-Star, or in the broadcast booth as one of the game’s best analysts, his career has circled from his California home to…
Meet Sarah Kustok: Basketball Lifer
Sarah Kustok has quickly become a fixture on Brooklyn Nets broadcasts with her quick wit and insightful analysis that stems from a career both playing and coaching the game. But Sarah’s path to broadcasting has also been as windingly diverse as her basketball background. She recently sat down with TBW’s Ray LeBov to discuss how…
Fran Fraschilla on NBA Draft, G-League, New York Knicks & More
Fran Fraschilla has been a staple of ESPN’s basketball coverage at all levels for the past 18 years. What began as a “be the international draft guy” assignment for the former college coach has turned into a multi-faceted and modern approach to covering all things NBA draft. Fran sat down with TBW’s Ray LeBov to…
Meet Fran Fraschilla: From Coach’s Chair to Broadcast Booth
Sometimes, the path you’ve laid for your life takes an unexpected turn. And things are all the better for it. Fran Fraschilla has been a staple of ESPN’s basketball coverage at all levels for the past 18 years. But it all began as “life-long preparation” on the playgrounds in Brooklyn and then a successful journeyman’s…
Meet Bob Rathbun: Just a 12-Year-Old Chasing a Broadcasting Dream
Bob Rathbun has been the TV voice of the Atlanta Hawks for 24 years, making him one of the longest-tenured single-team broadcasters in the NBA. Even as the team’s composition and league standing has changed many times over, his dedication to preparation and letting the game be the star never has. But his story starts…
Meet Jim Barnett: Across Six Decades as an NBA Player & Broadcaster – Part 2
Jim Barnett has been a staple on Golden State Warriors broadcasts for 35 years. But before that, he logged 11 NBA seasons as a player for seven teams (1966-1977). From filling in for Bill Russell, to figuring out broadcasting on the fly, to calling the Dubs’ darkest days and their finest hours, Barnett’s got some…
Meet Jim Barnett: Across Six Decades as an NBA Player & Broadcaster – Part 1
Jim Barnett has been a staple on Golden State Warriors broadcasts for 35 years. But before that, he logged 11 NBA seasons as a player for seven teams (1966-1977). From guarding Oscar Robertson and Jerry West to being coached by teammate Bill Russell, to being strong-armed by Red Auerbach and playing a supporting role alongside…
Meet Mark Jones: From College Player to NBA’s Play-by-Play Ringer
Simply put, Mark Jones understands the game. He sees how all the pieces, players and plays fit on a basketball court, sure, but the former Canadian college player also knows how to synthesize and communicate all those moving parts to the audience while always following Rule No. 1: Let the game do the talking. Just…
Meet Jared Greenberg, NBA Media’s ‘Mr. Everywhere’
TNT recently added Jared Greenberg to its Tuesday night NBA lineup, which means he is now doing sideline reporting on one of TNT’s two Tuesday games while continuing to perform as studio host at various NBA-TV telecasts. He suddenly seems everywhere. That’s a good thing, as he has quickly become one of the most versatile…