CBS is unveiling a pregame show to run ahead of its four nationally televised WNBA broadcasts this season, and the cast includes one of the most famous basketball coaches in America.
On Wednesday, the network announce that WNBA Tip Off would run for between 30 minutes and one hour prior to all four games scheduled for the CBS broadcast network. The cast will feature South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley and two-time WNBA champion Renee Montgomery. They’ll be joined by studio host Sarah Kustok, whose basketball bona fides include being the first-ever solo female game analyst for an NBA franchise, the Brooklyn Nets.
The crew’s first game together will be this Saturday’s primetime affair between the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky. Unfortunately, that game will not feature a renewal of the Caitlin Clark-Angel Reese rivalry, as Clark continues to recover from a quad injury. However, WNBA Tip Off will get another crack at Fever-Sky later this year for a Saturday afternoon game on August 9.
TV networks continue to invest more and more into their NBA coverage. Ion has run a half-hour pregame show since it began airing Friday night doubleheaders last season. WNBA Countdown has continued to earn more slots on ESPN.
As the league grows, so does its television coverage. CBS is continuing that trend, and hired a strong cast of studio analysts to boot.