Hot mics have embarrassed many a media professional. <\/p>\n
Cincinnati Reds longtime broadcaster Thom Brennaman was suspended indefinitely in 2020 after his microphone accidentally picked up him using a three-letter anti-gay slur. <\/p>\n
Charles Barkley dropped an uncensored F-bomb during an Inside the NBA on TNT broadcast in 2025 while venting about NBA award voters. <\/p>\n
And just two months ago, San Francisco Giants executive Buster Posey trolled radio station KNBR on-air after a behind-the-scenes employee was caught on a hot mic talking trash about him.<\/p>\n
Add reporters covering Sacramento Kings media day Monday to the list. At least three were heard in an unvarnished conversation<\/a> about Kings players Ben Simmons<\/a> and Zach LaVine<\/a> that took a personal turn.<\/p>\n A handful of local outlets livestreamed media day interviews. But the mics also picked up reporters chatting, and embarrassing comments went beyond their frequent use of the hyper-localized and outdated NorCal modifier \u201chella.\u201d <\/p>\n Comments begin about Simmons, a guard on a one-year, non-guaranteed contract after missing last season with injuries. A female says \u201cThat\u2019s what comes with being Ben Simmons. He is cringe, cringe,\u201d and another jumps in to say he is \u201clucky he\u2019s so fine.\u201d <\/p>\n The first media member agrees, saying \u201cHe\u2019s a good-looking dude. His skin is, like, so smooth, I was like, damn, no tattoos?\u201d<\/p>\n A male voice joins the conversation, asking, \u201cI thought Jordan Poole<\/a> was your type.\u201d <\/p>\n A female voice replies, \u201cAllegedly, I like light-skinned, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n The male voice continues: \u201cWhat about Zach LaVine, then?\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cHella fine,\u201d the female voice replies. <\/p>\n \u201cI think his personality annoys the [expletive] out of me, so that\u2019s what makes him less fine,\u201d the first person says. \u201cZach\u2019s cute but his personality [expletive] annoys me. He just seems like hella like a prick. But he is beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a [expletive] UCLA guy,\u201d replies the third person. \u201cJust all of them are.\u201d<\/p>\n Another voice jumps in, offering that LaVine is \u201chella fine, too.\u201d<\/p>\n Someone asks how the others would rank Kings players by hotness. One voice votes for Simmons because of \u201chis skincare routine.\u201d<\/p>\n Apparently referring to the team\u2019s woeful 22-60 record last season, the male voice responds by cracking, \u201cWell, Ben wasn\u2019t a King for the last year and a half either,\u201d to which a female voice concedes, \u201cThat\u2019s true.\u201d<\/p>\n The reporters involved have not been publicly identified, and none of the players have responded. LaVine\u2019s wife, Hunter, did offer a low-key comment<\/a> to the Kings Muse recording, writing on X, \u201ca great start to the season!\u201d<\/p>\n