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Film & TV April 10, 2023
Shlomo Sprung
Shlomo Sprung

‘NBA in Stephen A’s World’ Alternate Broadcasts Return for 5 Playoff Games

Photo courtesy of ESPN
Last Updated: July 1, 2023
The prolific First Take co-host is back starting April 12 for a series of live presentations for the NBA postseason — welcome back to Stephen A’s World.

Stephen A. Smith will continue his run of alternative broadcasts during the NBA playoffs, beginning Wednesday on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. eastern with two elimination contests in the play-in tournament as the Chicago Bulls take on the Toronto Raptors and the Oklahoma City Thunder visit the New Orleans Pelicans.

A joint production of ESPN, Smith’s Mr. SAS Productions, and Peyton Manning‘s Omaha Productions, NBA in Stephen A’s World brings the ubiquitous First Take co-host and NBA Countdown analyst’s opinions, stylings, and musings five times this postseason, including Game 1 of the NBA Finals on June 1. Telecasts will be shown on ESPN2 and the ESPN app, with most appearing on ESPN+.

  • April 12, 7 p.m. ET: Play-in Tournament
  • April 15, 1 pm. ET: First Round, Game 1
  • May 5, 10 p.m. ET: Second Round, Game 3
  • May 16, 9 p.m. ET: Western Conference Finals Game 1
  • June 1, 9 p.m. ET: NBA Finals Game 1
Photo courtesy of ESPN

“NBA in Stephen A’s World has proven to be must-see TV, like always when it involves Stephen,” David Roberts, ESPN’s Head of NBA and Studio Production, said of the news. “When you watch Stephen take in an NBA game in a living room-like setting, his deep passion for the sport is evident. We’re looking forward to a fun, five-episode run during what is expected to be an exciting, unpredictable NBA Playoffs.”

NBA in Stephen A’s World launched this season on Oct. 26 with coverage from the premiere of the Marvel Studios blockbuster Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. There were several other episodes throughout the season, including the New York Knicks–Philadelphia 76ers game on Christmas Day which featured a star-studded guest list including Spike Lee, Morris Chestnut, Fat Joe, Roy Wood Jr., Lil Rel Howery, Boban Marjanovic, and Kendrick Perkins as “Santa Perk.”

Photo courtesy of ESPN

The playoff editions of Smith’s show promise a rotating cast of ESPN NBA analysts, live polls, social media interaction, and viewer participation.

If the playoffs are as exciting and endlessly energetic as Stephen A. himself always is, we’re in for a tremendous postseason.

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Shlomo Sprung

Shlomo Sprung is a Senior Staff Writer at Boardroom. He has more than a decade of experience in journalism, with past work appearing in Forbes, MLB.com, Awful Announcing, and The Sporting News. He graduated from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 2011, and his Twitter and Spotify addictions are well under control. Just ask him.