According to Front Office Sports, Charlotte Hornets analyst Dell Curry is joining Amazon as part of its NBA coverage team.
That would most likely mean that his time with the Hornets is coming to end, but there’s been no word on that yet. There are examples of play-by-play commentators splitting time between local and national broadcasts (Mike Breen (Knicks), Ian Eagle (Nets), and Mark Jones (Kings) being the notable ones), but I don’t think that’s nearly as common for analysts. At the very very least, Dell definitely won’t be on Hornets games full time next year.
Dell is going to be missed. He and Eric Collins have developed a tremendous chemistry that has made them arguably the best local broadcast duo in the NBA. His mostly chill demeanor provided perfect foil for Eric Collins’ goofiness, but he always found moments to flip the script and bring his own humor to the broadcast.
On the other side of things, I’m personally excited for Curry and the fact that the rest of the NBA world will be exposed to how he calls games. I don’t like that this report is being framed as some sort of tactic or ploy to lure Steph Curry to Amazon after his career ends. That’s doing a disservice to the quality of analyst that Dell is. He’s going to be a joy to listen to on national broadcasts with whoever he gets paired up with.
Eric Collins appears safe for now, but I do worry about his future with Amazon and NBC continually filling up their broadcast teams. It’ll be interesting to see where the Hornets go with next season’s analyst position. I think Terrence Oglesby would be the favorite given he’s been regular on the game productions and filled in for a game last season. But maybe the network goes outside to get a more recognizable name. I guess we will have to wait and see.
BIG UPDATE: According to Travis Hancock of WFNZ in Charlotte, Dell is staying with the team along with the Amazon gig.
More Updates
Amazon Prime officially unveiled the new lineup of on-air talent, and Hornets play-by-play man Eric Collins is part of it as well.
Both are apparently sticking around to do the “vast majority” of Hornets games, which is a huge relief since you could argue that the pair has been the best part of the organization for the last several years.
