ESPN has moved quickly to replace Elle Duncan, reportedly awarding the fast-rising Christine Williamson to two of Duncan’s key positions at the network.
With Duncan’s contract set to expire in the coming months, the SportsCenter and women’s basketball studio host reportedly took a new role as the face of Netflix’s sports programming earlier this fall. And after the news that Malika Andrews is expected to replace Duncan as the top WNBA host, it appears Williamson is set to take over the rest of Duncan’s duties.
According to Front Office Sports, Williamson will replace Duncan on both the vaunted 6 p.m. ET SportsCenter as well as the studio lead for the women’s basketball College GameDay.
That likely puts Williamson in position to also be the top host for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament, where Duncan had earned high praise for her work alongside analysts Chiney Ogwumike and Andraya Carter. The final rounds of the women’s basketball tournament have, in recent years, drawn eight-figure audiences for ESPN and have become some of the most prominent hosting opportunities at the network.
FOS reports that Duncan will host her final SportsCenter on Dec. 16, at which point Williamson will move from the noon and 2 p.m. ET editions to the hour-long 6 o’clock show alongside Kevin Neghandi.
Williamson began her tenure at ESPN primarily hosting digital and streaming shows for the NBA, WNBA and college sports. She has added SportsCenter duties over time and has, for the past two seasons, served as a contributing college sports reporter for College GameDay.
Now, the young, humorous host will get her biggest opportunity yet for the Worldwide Leader.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.