Select Warriors, Clippers, Nuggets, Spurs, Thunder and Trail Blazers Players to be Mic’d During Matchups

Top ESPN NBA Voices to Preview First Round Playoff Matchups with The Jump and Woj & Lowe Specials Friday

ESPN and ABC will combine to televise up to 44 games from this year’s NBA Playoffs, including the NBA Western Conference Finals, exclusively on ESPN, and the NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV on ABC. The playoff action begins on ESPN this Saturday, April 13, starting at 2:30 p.m. ET when the Philadelphia 76ers host the Brooklyn Nets. Dave Pasch will be courtside at Wells Fargo Center with analyst Doris Burke and reporter Cassidy Hubbarth. The Golden State Warriors begin their 3-peat chase at 8:15 p.m. on ABC when the reigning NBA Champions host the LA Clippers. On Sunday, April 14, Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder visit Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series at 3:30 pm on ABC. Mike Breen, analysts Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson, and reporter Lisa Salters will call both ABC broadcasts this weekend. ESPN Radio will broadcast Saturday’s Clippers- Warriors game beginning at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday’s Thunder-Trail Blazers matchup at 3 p.m.

NBA Countdown will tip off Saturday’s game coverage at 1:30 pm on ESPN and 8 p.m. on ABC, and Sunday’s game coverage at 3 p.m. on ABC with host Michelle Beadle, alongside analysts Jalen Rose, Paul Pierce and Stan Van Gundy.

To begin ESPN’s 2019 NBA playoff coverage, The Jump host Rachel Nichols will be joined by a cast of high-profile analysts, reporters and guests to breakdown the first round matchups during The Jump’s 30-minute playoff preview special, Friday, April 12, at 3 p.m. on ESPN2. Following The Jump, ESPN Senior NBA Insider, Adrian Wojnarowski and Senior NBA Writer, Zach Lowe, talk all things NBA, including the start of the playoffs, 2019 free agency and the biggest NBA storylines of the moment during Friday’s 3:30 p.m. Woj & Lowe Show special on ESPN2.

ESPN & ABC first round, Game 1 schedule:

Commentator highlights:

• Roster of accomplished, veteran women to provide coverage this weekend, including, Michelle Beadle, Doris Burke, Cassidy Hubbarth, Rachel Nichols and Lisa Salters.
• Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson – the longest-tenured NBA Finals broadcast team – to call two games with reporter Lisa Salters.
• Two NBA Finals M.V.P.’s – Chauncey Billups and Paul Pierce – contribute to weekend coverage.
• Four former NBA head coaches to cover this weekend’s matchups – Hubie Brown, Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy and Stan Van Gundy.
• ESPN officiating expert Steve Javie will provide analysis from the NBA Replay Center in Secaucus, N.J. for telecasts throughout the weekend.

More digital content is available on the NBA section of ESPN.com, including this week’s NBA Power Rankings. All ESPN programming is available to stream on the ESPN App.

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ESPN NBA contacts:

Ben Cafardo at 860-766-3496 or [email protected] | Twitter: @Ben_ESPN

Shakeemah Simmons-Winter at 860-766-1845 or [email protected] |

Twitter: @ShakeemahESPN.