The ESPN network laid off senior NBA writer Zach Lowe, according to a report filed on Thursday, September 26.
Lowe worked with ESPN over a decade ago in 2012, following time writing for Sports Illustrated and contributing to Bill Simmons’ Grantland site.
This news comes just a few weeks after ESPN’s lead NBA reporter, Adrian Wojnarowski, left the company to become the general manager of St. Bonaventure’s men’s basketball team.
By the time it closed in 2015, Lowe was one of the few contributors to move to ESPN as an NFL writer alongside Bill Barnwell.
Lowe’s salary, which exceeded $1 million a year, was a major factor in his departure. Lowe’s salary, which was over seven figures annually, was the biggest factor in ESPN’s decision, according to sources briefed on the terms of his contract. He is expected to be the final layoff of this round.
Lowe was not only known as a writer but also by constant on-air work on ESPN’s NBA Today and by hosting a popular podcast, the Lowe Post.
His departure comes at a time when ESPN has terminated Robert Griffin III and Samantha Ponder just before the onset of the football season.
However, Lowe’s departure comes at a time when NBC and Amazon are preparing to add NBA talent ahead of their 2025 broadcasting deals, assuming TNT’s lawsuit with the NBA is resolved.
ESPN is in a state of transition to its current NBA coverage, with the surprise retirement of insider Adrian Wojnarowski and the network figuring out if it will add to the lead broadcast team of Mike Breen and Doris Burke.
Another massive shake-up, this time to ESPN’s coverage of the NBA, comes in this round of layoffs. Perhaps in a decision no one could have predicted, longtime reporter Adrian Wojnarowski announced he’s retiring from the news business to take a general manager position at his alma mater St. Bonaventure.
