During a six-week sprint for the season restart, ABC / ESPN, in association with the NBA and Turner, has tried to turn what has long been termed the “Happiest Place on Earth” into the most safe.
By creating the NBA bubble at Disney World in Orlando, the league and networks hope to protect players and staff from the coronavirus.
But they’ve done more than that: They’ve tried to transform ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex into a kind of next-generation, pandemic-proof television studio.
As ESPN approaches its first broadcast on Friday night, it has tried to create a great sensation without the fans present.
To do this, the network has built in more than a month and a half more than 30 infrastructures inside and outside the three arenas that house the courts.
ESPN did not disclose how much it spent on the facility, but reported that the NBA outlay was $ 150 million for the entire bubble.
“In talking to others, this compound looks like an Olympic-type compound,” ESPN Vice President of Production Mike Shiffman told The Post on FaceTime as he took an hour-long tour of the arena and the broadcast setup of ESPN.
ESPN, TNT and the NBA have tried to think of everything to make it stand out since Shiffman, along with league officials and Turner, surveyed the site six weeks ago.
The aesthetic includes virtual fans and a homey atmosphere for each team. National broadcasts will feature more than 20 cameras instead of 12 for bubble-free pre-pandemic play.
On all three courts, ESPN will use more than 60 robotic cameras. There are around 200 ESPN employees working at the event, almost 20 of them are on the air.
The hope is to make it feel like a great event.
“That’s a big part,” said Shiffman.
ESPN and Turner, which started with the first regular season restart game on Thursday, are not only responsible for their broadcasts, but also for the 22 regional sports networks, so any basketball you see in the coming months will have its mark. The two networks are providing a “worldwide stream” to RSNs as YES for streaming their teams’ games.
Safety is very important, and the NBA has implemented a two-tier bubble system.
The green area is where the players reside. There are some reporters in the green zone, like ESPN’s Malika Andrews.
Upon arrival, these media members had to undergo negative and quarantine tests for seven days before being able to move through the designated areas.
People in the yellow zone, where Shiffman and the ABC / ESPN broadcast team Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson reside, are screened upon arrival at the Waldorf and must be quarantined for one day before leaving their rooms if not. Try COVID-19, which has a quick change. They have no in-person interaction with the players.
They are tested twice a week and must wear masks. There has been no pushback against the rules.
Inside its main production truck, the number of staff has been cut in half from the 10-12 standard to six. They are all separated by a plexiglass divider.
“You feel safe,” said Shiffman.
In the arena, Breen, Van Gundy and Jackson will be in a position equivalent to being 12 rows up. They will also have transparent dividers between each of them.
For the games, the nets will try to show some unique shots, using a railroad camera on the side of the court. There are also free-throw extended line cameras, which normally don’t exist.
Since there are no fans in the arena, the rail shot can be used during live action instead of just during reps. ESPN will also have behind-the-scenes cameras, allowing the audience to watch as players prepare.
About six weeks ago, when Disney was designated as the site for the NBA restart, Shiffman, along with NBA officials and Turner, made the trip to Orlando to see how they could transform the court and may have been successful in thinking of everything.
Turner got up first Thursday night. Starting Friday, ESPN will be center stage. Then you will have 10 games in four days.
It’s been a sprint to turn gyms and vacant lots into safe places, but ESPN hopes it will still provide NBA entertainment at the highest level.
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