The ultimate Woj bomb: Insider leaves ESPN. And Walker’s eyebrow-raising Heat revelations
ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski, the NBA’s preeminent insider, left the media business Wednesday, announcing plans to join his alma mater St. Bonaventure as general manager of its basketball program.
In a social media post on X, Wojnarowski said:
“I grew up the son of a factory worker two miles from ESPN’s campus and only ever dreamed of making a living as a sportswriter. Thirty-seven years ago, the Hartford Courant gave me my first byline, and I never stopped chasing the thrill of it all.
“This craft transformed my life, but I’ve decided to retire from ESPN and the news industry. I understand the commitment required in my role, and it’s an investment that I’m no longer driven to make. Time isn’t in endless supply, and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful.
“I leave with overwhelming gratitude for countless mentors and colleagues, subjects and stories, readers and viewers. No one has benefited more than me from the belief, trust and generosity of others.
“The past seven years at ESPN have been a particular privilege. I’m appreciative of the company’s leadership — especially Jimmy Pitaro and Cristina Daglas — for the understanding and acceptance of my decision to make a life change.
“After all these years reporting on everyone’s teams, I’m headed back to my own.”
The Athletic’s Shams Charania and TNT’s Chris Haynes, who are both free agents, are natural possibilities to replace Wojnarowski, who was (according to The Athletic) earning $7 million a year in a contract that had three years remaining.
Wojnarowski, 55, told ESPN that it’s “a thrill of a lifetime to be able to return to a university and community that I love in a role of service to our student-athletes, coaches and institution. I am hopeful that I can bring value in a lot of areas to our basketball program and open doors for our young men’s futures in ways both professionally and personally.”
In his new role, Wojnarowski will manage the program’s name, image and likeness efforts, transfer portal, recruiting, family and alumni player relationships, professional player programs and fundraising.
WALKER’S REVELATIONS
Two years before the 20th anniversary of the Heat’s 2006 championship team, former Heat forward Antoine Walker made some interesting revelations in the DraftKing Network podcast “Forgotten Seasons.”
? He said “Pat Riley knew everything” and was aware of what Heat players were partying.
“He had everybody paid on South Beach,” Walker said.
“The valet, the bartenders, the hotel staff — he knew everything that was happening. So, we learned not to party on the beach. We’d move around to other places like strip clubs, places where Pat wouldn’t know. Because if you were on South Beach, Pat Riley was going to find out. He was on top of everything, and if you weren’t careful, he’d come down on you.”
? Walker said Shaquille O’Neal “was doing a lot of parties back then. We would have parties on the road and kick it. I mean, it was just a fun season, man. We had a lot of fun. We probably could have won 60 games if we didn’t get off to such a bad start.
“We still won 52 games, still was a three seed, but we always knew that it was going to be hard for anybody to beat us in a seven-game series. Once we gelled and got ourselves together, we knew that. I always tell people, I’ve never partied and played basketball like that in my life. That 15-strong saying was so strong, man. We hung out with each other. There were never any problems internally.
“It was a special year, man. I will always remember it. My college championship was special, but this was special too because we did it on the big stage, in the NBA, with those guys.
“After we won the championship, we got back to Miami and went straight to the strip club, Diamonds. That was the first party. We probably did $150,000 in singles that night, acting a fool. Everybody got 10, 20 thousand in singles. We had a good time. After that, we had the parade a couple days later, and then I went on my own 30-day run. I hit all the hot cities. It was a crazy time, but it was special. Winning that title was something I’ll always remember.”
? Walker said of Riley’s rules: “The only thing different throughout the season is he lightened up on the dress code and allowed us to have our own personalities. Still had to wear your suit on the road.”
? He said Erik Spoelstra, a Heat assistant coach at the time, “was a big part” of that 2005-06 championship team. “He was running all the meetings,.. Went over the game plan [after Van Gundy left]. You could tell he was going to be a great coach.
? He said Stan Van Gundy “sold me on coming off the bench.”
He said “Stan was a screamer and a yeller. Not everyone responds to that, especially the veteran guys we had on our team. Stan was overemphasizing things that, with a veteran team, weren’t necessary. That was the separation…
“I like Stan personally. He didn’t bother me… Stan bothered some guys with his delivery, and it just wasn’t the right fit. But to Stan’s defense, Shaq got hurt early in the season, and we started 10 and 10. That 10 and 10 start hurt Stan’s position, and eventually, Pat Riley had to step in.”
Van Gundy resigned as the Heat’s head coach on Dec. 12, 2005, just 21 games into the season, citing a need to spend more time with his family. Riley replaced him as head coach, and led Miami to their first championship that season.
During the podcast, Walker repeatedly said that Van Gundy was let go by the Heat.
SHAQ WEIGHS IN
In a different podcast, O’Neal said: “When I first got to Miami, I said to D-Wade, ‘You heard a lot of stuff about me, but that’s not going to happen here. This is your team. I’m here to help you get a championship.’ I didn’t want the same issues I had with Kobe [Bryant].
“I told Wade, ‘I came here because of you, and I need your help to get one more ring.’ We never had a problem. When we went down 0-2 in the Finals, we jumped on him. We said, ‘No, don’t look for us. You go to work.’ And he did. He took over the next four games and led us to the championship. That’s the difference between Wade and others. He had it from the beginning, and I respected him for it.”
