NBC Is Using AI—People Are Mad

…Aptly called Bird’s Eye View (obviously). The pod will debut on May 16th and will include analytics and X’s and O’s, and feature convos with players and coaches. Sounds like a Nobel Pod Prize winner to us! 

If you thought Bill Belichick’s book was going to be about X’s and O’s think again. And no, it’s not about Jordon Hudson either (to our knowledge). This book, a memoir, is said to be about emotion and emotional intelligence. Ok Bill, we see you!

Owen Wilson’s new AppleTV+ sports comedy will be the best thing since sliced golf balls. Ok, that was bad. But Wilson says this show is going to be fire. 

The NHL will forego an official All-Star Game and keep some kind of international event instead. Exactly what that event will be is still a mystery, but it will kick off the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. 

Anyone can train for their whole lives and become a Formula 4, 3, 2, or 1 driver—but it’ll cost ya! Upwards of 1 million American dollhairs. 

NBC is using AI for their NBA promos, and people are POed. That’s a lot of acronyms. Let’s break this all down.  

If you are old enough to remember the NBA’s promos on NBC from the 1990s, Jim Fagan was the voice behind it all. If you aren’t old enough to recall those promos, congrats on not caring about your skincare routine yet. 

So, NBC had a great idea. Let’s bring back Jim Fagan, they thought. Everyone loves a good dose of nostalgia, they said. The problem here is that Jim Fagan died in 2017, and the broadcasting conglomerate will enlist the help of AI to create his voice. 

And suffice it to say, some people do not like this news. In fact, after sorting through all of the quote posts on X, none of them were positive. See above and below for the reactions from industry folks, sports writers, voice actors, and fans. 

Some people who shared their frustrations even claimed to be AI fans. They believed it to be a sort of bizarro way to use a deceased person’s likeness. 

So, perfect, genius, brilliant, beautiful reader, what do you think? Let us know on social. Or just keep on going about your day. Either way.

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Everything moves so fast these days, it feels like every day is a new race to the top for the frontrunning footwear brands. Reebok is the latest big brand to try to shake things up. Yesterday, they gave Jide Osifeso the keys to Reebok basketball. Osifeseo, who, years ago, founded his own label Hymne, has famously collaborated with and designed merch for big names like Kendrick, SZA, and Jordan Peele.  

As head of basketball, he’ll bring a culturally relevant approach as they seek to make a splash among Gen Z—everyone’s always trying to impress those guys these days. They signed 18-year-old Arkansas commit Darius Acuff to a multi-year deal. And speaking of impressing people, word on the street is Darius has already impressed Reebok ambassador Allen Iverson. Enough for AI to offer his mentorship. 

Since Reebok changed hands in 2021, they’ve been attempting to re-establish themselves as a real hooper’s brand. Recall that after he was made president of Reebok Basketball in late 2023, Shaq promised to “...bring it back and see a new generation of athletes…wanting to rep Reebok again.” Most recently, they dropped the Reebox x Angel Reese Shaqnosis shoe, which is basically already sold out, 5 days into sales. Also, if you couldn’t tell by the name, Shaqnosis is a tribute to Shaq. So it seems like they’re also appealing to Gen X. 

More likely, they want to impress everyone who loves basketball. We can get behind that.