Inside the NBA and WNBA's booming player-to-broadcast pipeline - Australia News Beep

When the NBA Finals begin airing on ESPN this week, Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green will return to “Inside the NBA” as a guest analyst for Games 3 and 4, resuming a role he helped pioneer.

In 2022, Green became the first active NBA player to make in-season appearances as a television analyst. But he’s no longer alone.

While athletes in tennis and even the NFL have double dipped in broadcasting and playing, the trend of active player contributors continues to gain steam in professional basketball.

NBA players Kyle Lowry and Tyrese Haliburton joined Prime Video as athlete contributors. On the WNBA side, Kelsey Plum signed on as a player contributor for Prime, Sophie Cunningham is working as a studio analyst for USA Network and Caitlin Clark made multiple appearances on NBC’s studio show for NBA games.

“I think it’s becoming more attractive because it gives players the opportunity to show the other side of their brains and not just a basketball playing side,” Lowry said. “It’s a lot that goes into being a professional athlete, especially a basketball player. You have to continue to play basketball, working (on) your craft, but you also gotta watch the film, study it, etc. Also having to explain what you’re doing, how you are preparing yourself to the everyday fan is fun.”

Not all players are necessarily cut out for broadcasting. Amina Hussein, Prime Video’s head of U.S. sports on-air talent and development, said she keeps her ear to the streets to figure out which players want to be in media and can bring a unique perspective to the table.

“Folks that are authentic, that are genuine, that love the sport that they’re talking about. And I have a ‘no asshole policy,’” Hussein said. “Just looking for genuinely good people that want to help grow, talk and enjoy the sport, and bring a different perspective.”

Previous broadcast experience is not a requirement, though it is a bonus. Cunningham, a guard for the Indiana Fever, previously served as a guest analyst on the Phoenix Suns‘ pre- and postgame broadcasts in 2022 and commentated on college basketball for various networks.

Jeff Behnke, USA Sports executive producer, said the primary reasons the network recruited Cunningham were her personality and recognizability.

“She says what’s on her mind and she is also really passionate about the game of basketball,” Behnke said. “I think any time you can get that in the moment, on the field, on the racetrack, on the court information and personality weaved into a broadcast, it’s a great thing.”

While fans are used to seeing retired players as talking heads on TV, active athletes are behind the scenes in the locker room every day and can draw from their current experiences to paint a picture.

Haliburton, who missed this entire Indiana Pacers season while recovering from a torn Achilles tendon he suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, said he viewed his role with Prime as a way to stay connected to the game while injured. He mostly used his appearances to discuss his rehab process and top teams in the league with Prime’s main studio crew, which includes host Taylor Rooks alongside former NBA players Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Blake Griffin and Udonis Haslem.

“Sometimes when older guys are talking about the sport, sometimes it can sound a little, ‘Back in my day,’ whereas I think getting my perspective on things, as a guy who is having success currently, is just a little different,” Haliburton said. “I think it’s interesting to hear their perspective on things and have rebuttals and conversations which I’m appreciative of, because obviously Steve and Dirk played in a different game versus myself. So I’m very appreciative of those different perspectives. I think that’s what makes our game beautiful.”

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Victor Wembanyama leads Spurs to a huge win in double OT. See game highlights

Oklahoma City Thunder fans react during Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs at Paycom Center on May 18, 2026.

(Alonzo Adams, Imagn Images)

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Victor Wembanyama leads Spurs to a huge win in double OT. See game highlights

Oklahoma City Thunder fans react during Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs at Paycom Center on May 18, 2026.

(Alonzo Adams, Imagn Images)