STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — Reggie Miller will be NBC Sports' lead game analyst when it begins its coverage of the NBA next season, the network announced Tuesday.
Miller has been one of TNT Sports lead NBA analysts for 20 years. He called his 18th All-Star Game this past weekend.
When Miller joins NBC in October, he is expected to call one or more games per week during the regular season and playoffs.
Coincidentally, some of the top moments in Miller's 18-year playing career with the Indiana Pacers occurred on NBC, which carried NBA games from 1990 through 2002.
That included Game 1 of the 1995 Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks when he scored eight points in a span of 9 seconds at Madison Square Garden to beat the New York Knicks.
“Some of my most memorable moments have been on NBC and I’m looking forward to creating more,” Miller said in a statement.
Miller — elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012 — also was selected to the NBA 75th Anniversary team.
“Having provided so many memorable moments on NBC during his playing days, it’s only fitting that Reggie will join our team as the NBA returns to NBC and debuts on Peacock,” NBC Sports executive producer Sam Flood said in a statement. “As basketball fans know, not only was Reggie one of the game’s greatest shooters and clutch performers, but he was also one of its most entertaining players with a unique combination of skill and swagger. He has successfully brought those traits to his broadcasting career and consistently provides viewers with in-depth analysis while pulling no punches.”
NBC will have up to 100 regular-season games, including on Sunday night once the NFL season has ended. It will also have games on Tuesday throughout the regular season, while a Monday night doubleheader will be exclusively streamed on Peacock. NBC will also have the All-Star Game and All-Star Saturday Night.
During the playoffs, NBC and/or Peacock will have up to 28 games the first two rounds, with at least half on NBC. It also will carry one of the two conference finals in six of the 11 years of the deal.
NBC previously announced that Mike Tirico will be the lead play-by-play announcer, Jamal Crawford will be a game analyst and Frank DiGraci will serve as coordinating producer.
Noah Eagle, who does college football, college basketball and some NFL games, is also expected to be a part of NBC’s coverage even though an announcement has not been made. Jalen Rose is a game analyst for college basketball on NBC/Peacock, but does have NBA studio and analyst experience from his time with ESPN/ABC.
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Broadcaster Reggie Miller works during the first half of Game 2 in an NBA basketball second-round playoff series between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers, Wednesday, May 8, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
NEW YORK (AP) — A jury has found that concert giant Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary had a harmful monopoly over big concert venues, dealing the company a loss in a lawsuit over claims brought by dozens of U.S. states.
A Manhattan federal jury deliberated for four days before reaching its decision Wednesday in the closely watched case, which gave fans the equivalent of a backstage pass to a business that dominates live entertainment in the U.S. and beyond.
At the end of the proceeding, the judge told lawyers on both sides to meet with one another “and the United States” to provide a joint letter proposing a schedule for motions and how the remedies phase of the case would occur. He told them to deliver it by late next week.
Live Nation Entertainment owns, operates, controls booking for or has an equity interest in hundreds of venues. Its subsidiary Ticketmaster is widely considered to be the world’s largest ticket-seller for live events. Its lawyers did not immediately comment as they left the courthouse, but said a statement would be issued shortly.
The verdict could cost Live Nation and Ticketmaster hundreds of millions of dollars, just for the $1.72 per ticket that the jury found Ticketmaster had overcharged consumers in 22 states. The companies could also be assessed penalties. In addition, sanctions could result in court orders that they divest themselves of some entities, including venues such as amphitheaters that they own.
The civil case, initially led by the U.S. federal government, accused Live Nation of using its reach to smother competition — by blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers, for example.
“It is time to hold them accountable,” Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney for the states, said in a closing argument, calling Live Nation a “monopolistic bully” that drove up prices for ticket buyers.
Live Nation insisted it's not a monopoly, saying that artists, sports teams and venues decide prices and ticketing practices. A company lawyer insisted its size was simply a function of excellence and effort.
“Success is not against the antitrust laws in the United States,” attorney David Marriott said in his summation.
Ticketmaster was established in 1976 and merged with Live Nation in 2010. The company now controls of 86% of the market for concerts and 73% of the overall market when sports events are included, according to Kessler.
Ticketmaster has long drawn ire from fans and some artists. Grunge rock titans Pearl Jam battled the business in the 1990s, even filing an anti-monopoly complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, which declined to bring a case then.
Decades later, the Justice Department, joined by dozens of states, brought the current lawsuit during Democratic former President Joe Biden's administration. Days into the trial, Republican President Donald Trump's administration announced it was settling its claims against Live Nation.
The deal included a cap on service fees at some amphitheaters, plus some new ticket-selling options for promoters and venues — potentially allowing, but not requiring, them to open doors to Ticketmaster competitors such as SeatGeek or AXS. But the settlement doesn't force Live Nation to split from Ticketmaster.
A handful of the states joined the settlement. But more than 30 pressed ahead with the trial, saying the federal government hadn't gotten enough concessions from Live Nation.
The trial brought Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino to the witness stand, where he was questioned about matters including the company’s Taylor Swift ticket debacle in 2022. Rapino blamed a cyberattack.
The proceedings also aired a Live Nation executive's internal messages declaring some prices “outrageous,” calling customers “so stupid” and boasting that the company “robbing them blind, baby.” The executive, Benjamin Baker, apologetically testified that the messages were “very immature and unacceptable.”
FILE - The Ticketmaster logo is seen along the sideline of the field before an NFL football game, Sept. 15, 2024, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)
