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During a six-week sprint to the restart of the season, ABC/ESPN, in partnership with the NBA and Turner, has tried to turn what has long been billed as the “Happiest Place on Earth” into the safest. In creating the NBA’s bubble at Disney World in Orlando, the league and the networks hope to shield players …
During a six-week sprint to the restart of the season, ABC/ESPN, in partnership with the NBA and Turner, has tried to turn what has long been billed as the “Happiest Place on Earth” into the safest.
In creating the NBA’s bubble at Disney World in Orlando, the league and the networks hope to shield players and personnel from the coronavirus.
But they have done more than that — they have attempted to transform ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex into something of a state of the art, hopefully pandemic-proof TV studio.
As ESPN approaches its first broadcast Friday night, it has tried to create a big-time feel without fans present.
To do this, the network has in just a month-and-a-half erected 30-plus infrastructures inside and outside the three arenas that house the courts.
ESPN would not reveal how much it spent on the facility, but it had reported the NBA’s outlay was $150 million for the entire bubble.
“In speaking to others, this compound resembles an Olympic-type compound,” ESPN vice president of production Mike Shiffman told The Post over FaceTime as he gave an hour-long tour of the arena and ESPN’s broadcasting setup.
ESPN, TNT and the NBA have tried to think of everything to make it stick out since Shiffman, along with officials from the league and Turner, did a site survey six weeks ago.
The aesthetics include virtual fans and a home-court feel for each team. The national broadcasts will feature 20-plus cameras as opposed to 12 for a non-bubble, pre-pandemic games.
Throughout the three courts, ESPN will utilize more than 60 robotic cameras. There are around 200 ESPN staffers working on the event, nearly 20 of them are on-the-air.
The hope is to make it feel like a huge event.
“That’s a big part of it,” Shiffman said.
ESPN and Turner — which tipped off with Thursday’s first regular-season restart game — are not only responsible for their broadcasts, but also for the 22 regional sports networks, so any basketball you watch over the coming months will have their imprint on them. The two networks are providing a “world feed” to RSNs like YES for the broadcast of their teams’ games.
Safety is at a premium, and the NBA has put in place a two-level bubble system.
The green zone is where the players reside. There are some reporters in the green zone, like ESPN’s Malika Andrews.
Upon arrival, these media members had to test negative and quarantine for seven days before they could move around the designated areas.
People in the yellow zone, where Shiffman and ABC/ESPN’s top broadcast team of Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson reside, are tested upon arrival at the Waldorf and must quarantine for one day before being allowed out of their rooms upon a negative COVID-19 test, which has a quick turnaround. They have no in-person interaction with the players.
They are tested twice per week and are required to wear masks. There has been no pushback against the rules.
Inside its main production truck, the amount of personnel has been cut in half from the norm of 10-12 to six. Everyone is separated by a plexiglass divider.
“You feel safe,” Shiffman said.
At the arena, Breen, Van Gundy and Jackson will be in a perch equivalent to being 12 rows up. They too will have see-through dividers between each of them.
For the games, the networks will try to show some unique shots, using a rail cam at the side of the court. There are also free-throw line extended cameras, which are not there normally.
Since there are no fans in the arena, the rail shot may be used during live action as opposed to just during replays. ESPN will also have behind-the-scenes cameras, which will allow the audience to peer in as players prepare.
About six weeks ago, when Disney was designated as the site for the NBA restart, Shiffman, along with officials from the NBA and Turner, made the trip to Orlando to see how they could transform the court and may have succeeded in thinking of everything.
Turner was up first on Thursday night. Starting Friday, ESPN will be on center stage. Then it will have 10 games in four days.
It’s been a sprint to turn vacant gyms and lots into safe places, but one that ESPN hopes will still provide NBA entertainment at the highest level.
