When the NBA season started, fans were treated to a surprise.
With no advance notice and seemingly no desire from users for a change, ESPN dramatically altered the layout of its box scores. As the go-to app for many hoops junkies, ESPN’s move went over very poorly.
The new box scores feature offensive and defensive rebounds listed individually as well as two-point and three-point shooting. The result is a far more messy and jumbled interface than before.
For the most part, the uproar was siloed to the most passionate fans online. Content creators, podcast hosts, and reporters complained, but the internet is full of complaining.
The chorus of criticisms hit a fever pitch on Wednesday, however, when none other than Tim Legler, the network’s top NBA game analyst, joined in.
During a conversation on his All NBA podcast, Legler began to describe ESPN’s box score shakeup before co-host Adam Mares beat him to the punch.
“Thank you!” Legler said, mouth agape. “I can’t stand it. Why did they do it? Why do I have to go all the way across the page to see what guys shot from the field? Why? I’m telling you, the box score was perfect the way it was.”
The recently promoted color commentator even pledged to take it up the chain of command at ESPN.
“I’ll take this up with my people,” Legler laughed. “This is ESPN. I will take this up with them, to see if I can get this thing reverted to what it used to. And I’ll bet you, 90 percent of the people out there agree with us.”
When the man covering the NBA for your network takes issue with the way you present something as basic as a box score, you have a problem. If Legler can pull this off, he is bound to shoot up the power rankings for fans’ favorite NBA commentators.
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.