When the NBA Finals begin airing on ESPN this week, Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green will return to “Inside the NBA” as a guest analyst for Games 3 and 4, resuming a role he helped pioneer.
In 2022, Green became the first active NBA player to make in-season appearances as a television analyst. But he’s no longer alone.
While athletes in tennis and even the NFL have double dipped in broadcasting and playing, the trend of active player contributors continues to gain steam in professional basketball.
NBA players Kyle Lowry and Tyrese Haliburton joined Prime Video as athlete contributors. On the WNBA side, Kelsey Plum signed on as a player contributor for Prime, Sophie Cunningham is working as a studio analyst for USA Network and Caitlin Clark made multiple appearances on NBC’s studio show for NBA games.
“I think it’s becoming more attractive because it gives players the opportunity to show the other side of their brains and not just a basketball playing side,” Lowry said. “It’s a lot that goes into being a professional athlete, especially a basketball player. You have to continue to play basketball, working (on) your craft, but you also gotta watch the film, study it, etc. Also having to explain what you’re doing, how you are preparing yourself to the everyday fan is fun.”
Not all players are necessarily cut out for broadcasting. Amina Hussein, Prime Video’s head of U.S. sports on-air talent and development, said she keeps her ear to the streets to figure out which players want to be in media and can bring a unique perspective to the table.
“Folks that are authentic, that are genuine, that love the sport that they’re talking about. And I have a ‘no asshole policy,’” Hussein said. “Just looking for genuinely good people that want to help grow, talk and enjoy the sport, and bring a different perspective.”
Previous broadcast experience is not a requirement, though it is a bonus. Cunningham, a guard for the Indiana Fever, previously served as a guest analyst on the Phoenix Suns‘ pre- and postgame broadcasts in 2022 and commentated on college basketball for various networks.
Jeff Behnke, USA Sports executive producer, said the primary reasons the network recruited Cunningham were her personality and recognizability.
“She says what’s on her mind and she is also really passionate about the game of basketball,” Behnke said. “I think any time you can get that in the moment, on the field, on the racetrack, on the court information and personality weaved into a broadcast, it’s a great thing.”
While fans are used to seeing retired players as talking heads on TV, active athletes are behind the scenes in the locker room every day and can draw from their current experiences to paint a picture.
Haliburton, who missed this entire Indiana Pacers season while recovering from a torn Achilles tendon he suffered in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, said he viewed his role with Prime as a way to stay connected to the game while injured. He mostly used his appearances to discuss his rehab process and top teams in the league with Prime’s main studio crew, which includes host Taylor Rooks alongside former NBA players Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Blake Griffin and Udonis Haslem.
“Sometimes when older guys are talking about the sport, sometimes it can sound a little, ‘Back in my day,’ whereas I think getting my perspective on things, as a guy who is having success currently, is just a little different,” Haliburton said. “I think it’s interesting to hear their perspective on things and have rebuttals and conversations which I’m appreciative of, because obviously Steve and Dirk played in a different game versus myself. So I’m very appreciative of those different perspectives. I think that’s what makes our game beautiful.”
Balancing on-air appearances with an 82-game NBA schedule or 44-game WNBA schedule, not to mention other commitments, is no easy feat. Lowry did a few postgame segments for Prime this season after he finished playing in a game for the Philadelphia 76ers, after midnight on the East Coast.
Because players can’t predict their availability, Prime Video pays its contributors on a per appearance basis instead of locking them into a set number of appearances for a contract term. Network executives are clear, though: Basketball always comes first.
Cunningham, for example, will join USA Network’s WNBA doubleheader nights for pregame, halftime and postgame hits when her schedule permits, including sometimes when she’s on the road with the Fever. She said the schedule doesn’t faze her because being immersed in the league every day naturally helps prepare her as an analyst.
“We’re making TikToks and Instagrams and doing that type of thing anyway. When it comes to basketball, we’re watching film 24/7,” Cunningham said. “We’re watching the games or playing different teams, so you’re already doing it, but now I’m just getting paid to talk about it.”
In addition to her live studio appearances, USA hired a veteran producer to help Cunningham film mini features for on air and digital platforms – everything from player interviews to fun storylines to introspective pieces.
“Everyone knows us as who we are when we’re playing, and sometimes that’s a really good thing, somethings that’s a really bad thing,” Cunningham said. “But I want the audience to get to know people on a more personal level. Who are these women outside of the court? What do they like to do? What are their interests? Because I do think the W is so cool because you have a lot of smart women who are passionate about a lot of different things. There’s so much diversity, so it’s how can we highlight that? How can we inspire the next generation?”
Plum, a two-time WNBA champion and four-time All-Star, plays for the Los Angeles Sparks and is in the same city as Prime’s studios. Hussein said Prime will attempt to bring Plum into the studio on off days to film segments.
“I would love to have her on that court and demonstrating some plays and just getting into her basketball analytical mind,” Hussein said. “Kelsey specifically, I just know she’s a hoop head and I can’t wait to get her on that basketball court with the other ladies.”
Players are used to speaking publicly as part of their league media obligations. Still, active player contributors must walk a fine line between providing insightful commentary and avoiding sharing too much about their own team or opponents.
“A lot of the player contributions that I had to do was talking my own team which is very good and easy for me to do, but it’s also a tough balance because some things that you could say, you can’t,” Lowry said. “That’s just the brotherhood that we live in and the locker room is a very sacred place and some things are supposed to stay in the locker room.”
Athletes say their contributor roles allowed them to flex their basketball knowledge in a different way and simultaneously develop a new appreciation for broadcasters and analysts. Cunningham said that when she watches games, she pays almost more attention to the studio segments than to the actual basketball. Haliburton takes notes from his close friend Rooks, a veteran broadcaster.
In the age of social media and podcasts, athletes have more avenues than ever to speak directly to fans. But they still recognize the impact and reach that broadcast networks and streaming platforms possess, and the fractured media rights landscape has opened more doors.
“I think that these multiple platforms allow us players to control the narrative a little bit more to give our input,” Haliburton said. “Previously, if the game was not on as many networks, then there’s only so many spots and they’ll go to analysts and insiders and stuff. But I think that there’s a real interest in hearing what current players have to say and I think that taking advantage of that as players is important.”
The 2025-26 season marked the beginning of the NBA’s 11-year deal with three national broadcast partners: ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock and Prime Video.
WNBA games during the 2026 season are being broadcast on ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock/NBCSN, Prime Video, CBS Sports, ION, USA Network and NBA TV.
USA Network is in the first year of an 11-year media rights agreement with the WNBA and hired 15 announcers for its coverage team. Behnke said that as the “new kid on the block” for WNBA coverage, the network is cognizant that it must earn viewers’ trust.
“We want to be trusted, first and foremost,” Behnke said. “We want to be credible and we want to be entertaining. And if we can do all of those, we believe we’ll have a really successful year, but you have to work at it.”
Active player contributors can also appeal to younger audiences who might be new basketball fans. NBA on Prime’s median viewer age this season was 46.9, nine years younger than audiences watching the NBA this season on linear channels (56), and the NBA’s youngest audience in six years. A Prime spokesperson said Haliburton and Lowry’s appearances have also driven “significant” engagement on social media.
Hussein said feedback on active player contributors has been positive so far and hinted that Prime is working on bringing on additional players, though she wouldn’t reveal who just yet. She also added that it is beneficial from a business standpoint for Prime to establish relationships with current players, because you never know who might be interested in exploring a broadcast career down the line.
Lowry, who just completed his 20th NBA season, said taking the Prime gig was a “no-brainer” because it set him up for a smooth transition from playing to broadcasting whenever he’s ready.
Haliburton, meanwhile, is unsure whether his arrangement with Prime will continue next season when he returns to the court or whether he’ll pursue a broadcast career after retirement, but he’s happy to have options.
“It’s definitely a possibility,” Haliburton said. “I’ve had a lot of conversations about do I want to coach or whatever, but me at 26 years old, I’m sure my answer would be very different when I’m ready to give up or stop playing, so it’s hard to say right now.”
Cunningham is a long way from retirement, too, but said she has broadcast aspirations. Right now, she’s grateful for her opportunity with USA Network and hopeful that more active players will become contributors.
“I think hopefully this opens up more for other players to do what they are passionate about and get your feet wet a little bit while you’re still playing,” Cunningham said. “When the ball stops bouncing, you’re setting yourself up and I just think it’s really cool that companies are starting to invest in us because they see us as more than just basketball players.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA and WNBA players are becoming broadcasters — while still playing