data-mm-id=”_hxg35zzmn”>This year's NCAA Tournament would have to stub its toe repeatedly and offer up a spate of boring games down the stretch to not go down as one of the greatest in history. Through three days, it's had everything, like a family-friendly version of whichever club Stefon visited over the weekend that's still raging on and flouting COVID restrictions. Upsets. Star performances. The triumphant return of Loyola Chicago. We are all experiencing fun at such a high and consistent level that it's becoming harder to know what to do with our hands. And as always, Turner/CBS has been up to the monumental challenge March Madness presents. To sit down for 13 hours in front of a television is to be bombarded with splendid work from a deep stable of talented play-by-play announcers and analysts. From Brian Anderson to Ian Eagle to Jim Nantz to Grant Hill to Lisa Byington to Bill Raftery and Steve Lavin, there's no shortage of competent tour guides to help us navigate the cascading waters of non-stop exhilaration. And while it's always nice to recognize the forward-facing talent, a thought dawned on me during a commercial break. Are sports networks doing enough to highlight some of the people most responsible for these telecasts? Wouldn't it be nice to know about the producers and directors in the truck, who are spinning thousands of plates at once and making exponentially more editorial decisions than the broadcasters?Forgive the navel-gazing but the few occasions I've been able to observe a production truck in action have been among the most exhilarating professional experiences I've had. Everything moves incredibly fast, there is no margin for error, and putting together a mistake-free three hours is a Herculean effort. And that's just for a passible effort free of any graphic typos or glitches that get plastered on sports blogs, this one included. To create something memorable and moving is truly art. This year, the degree of difficulty is even higher with a dearth of fan-reaction shots to draw upon. These have long been staples of the televised tournament experience. Yet up to this point, savvy visionaries have worked around the issue without making any part of the tapestry feel empty. The painting to the corners is still happening with fewer resources and its seamlessness is a testament to the brilliance. Because on one hand the best directors and producers are like officials. If you're not at home thinking about what they're doing, it's a sign they're doing a good job. Still, it would be a nice addition to have their names get more recognition so viewers can learn their names and specific styles. Think about it. Film enthusiasts delight in studying the choices made by those overseeing the movie. It doesn't hamper their enjoyment of the actors' performances of the plot. It adds layer and texture as another avenue of thought. Giving viewers the choice to do just that with live sports events requires virtually no added effort. Oftentimes there will be a more detailed announcement of the braintrust in the truck at the top of broadcasts, but it is usually voiced over as the ball is about to tipped or kicked and gets buried by an avalanche of competition. An easy fix to this would be to include the names during the establishing shot of the announcers welcoming an audience to the show. There's precious little manpower needed to add the names of some key personnel below the booth's names and the people tasked with doing that work would greatly appreciate it. Selfless play-by-play voices often do this on their own accord, truly living up to their cliched "point guard" or "traffic cop" descriptors. But they shouldn't have to go out of their way to do it. It's long past time to normalize presenting a fuller and more noticeable picture of who is responsible for all the moving pictures and moving emotions we're grateful to share.
Related Posts
Jules Kounde is set to make his Barcelona debut on Sunday after he was belatedly registered to feature in LaLiga.
The France defender joined from Sevilla last month in a deal that could be worth €62.5million following a fine three-year spell at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan.
However, Barcelona were initially unable to register him to play in LaLiga as they needed to reduce their wage expenditure in line with the salary cap.
Registration priority was given to signings that arrived before Kounde, with Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen all making their debuts.
But media reports on Friday suggested Barca had finally been able to register the centre-back – head coach Xavi did not confirm that in his pre-match press conferenc…
Pep Guardiola has confirmed three more important Manchester City players have tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of their Premier League visit to Chelsea on Sunday.
City s top-flight clash with Everton on Monday was postponed following a coronavirus outbreak at the club, with Gabriel Jesus and Kyle Walker and another two staff members testing positive for COVID-19.
The match was called off in the hours before kick-off after City returned a number of positive cases , with the fixture becoming the second in the competition to be postponed this season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Newcastle were struck by the virus and missed a game at Aston Villa, while a third postponement followed on Wednesday as Tottenham versus Fulham fell by the wayside.
City re…
Frank Lampard has hailed low-maintenance Willian and revealed the forward is in talks with Chelsea over a new deal.
The 31-year-old scored twice in Chelsea s 2-0 win over Tottenham last weekend, taking his tally to four goals and three assists in the Premier League this term.
Willian is out of contract at the end of the season and suggested last month he had yet to be offered a new deal by the London club.
However, Lampard is eager for the Brazil international who turns 32 next August to commit his future to Chelsea.
He s in talks with the club. He speaks with the club on the money side of it, Lampard is quoted as saying by several British newspapers.
I m very happy for our team performance in the derby today, but at the same time I m very disapp…
Pep Guardiola wants Vincent Kompany to be mentally and physically fit before giving the Manchester City captain a sustained run of first-team action.
Kompany has been ravaged by a succession of muscle injuries over recent seasons, with calf problems decimating his 2015-16 campaign, in which he started only 20 of City s 58 games.
The last of those came in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid, the centre-back lasting only 10 minutes due to a groin and thigh injury that required surgery and ruled him out of Belgium s Euro 2016 campaign.
The 30-year-old made his first appearance under Guardiola in last month s EFL Cup tie at Swansea City, only for a fresh groin strain suffered in stoppage time to send him back to the treatment room.
Teenage striker Matthew Hoppe scored a stunning hat-trick to finally banish Schalke s winless run after 30 Bundesliga matches.
The German giants had not claimed a league victory since January 2020 heading into Saturday s home game against Hoffenheim.
Failure to win again would have seen Schalke equal Tasmania Berlin s record stretch of 31 Bundesliga matches without success from 1965-66.
However, an inspired outing from 19-year-old Hoppe set up a 4-0 triumph at the Veltins-Arena, ending that miserable streak and moving Schalke off the foot of the table.
The American had never previously netted a senior goal but repaid the faith shown in him by Christian Gross, Schalke s fourth coach of the season.
Hoppe s opener came in contentious circumstances th…
Carlo Ancelotti hailed Rodrygo as special after the forward s goal secured a 2-1 LaLiga win over Real Betis on Real Madrid s return to Santiago Bernabeu.
Vinícius Junior scored the opening goal in Madrid s first game at their revamped home for 106 days, but Sergio Canales equalised in the first half.
Rodrygo stepped up to make it four LaLiga wins out of four for the champions and consign Betis to a first defeat.
Madrid boss Ancelotti lavished praise on the Brazil forward following his decisive 65th-minute strike.
The Italian said: He is a special striker, he can play in all positions. He is fast, smart and effective one on one. The learning is over. He is a Real Madrid player for all purposes.
Ancelotti moved level with Vicente del …
Hamburg s Marcell Jansen says the club are targeting a win over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday as they look to get their season on track.
Hamburg have endured an inconsistent campaign to date and sit ninth in the Bundesliga table ahead of the weekend, while Dortmund are 12 points adrift of leaders Bayern Munich in second place.
Dortmund are favourites. We need to be wide awake from the first minute. Our goal must be to win there, Jansen told Bild.
We still lack consistency and lose our concentration too much. We re brave but not toxic enough. We hide too much. It is a mystery that I don t understand.
The full-back has fallen out of favour with Germany since winning his first cap in September 2010, but aims to play his way back into Joachim Loew s plans…
Napoli midfielder Walter Gargano has joined Parma on loan with the option of a permanent move to the Stadio Ennio Tardini.
The 29-year-old spent last season on loan at Inter, making 28 Serie A appearances, and has reportedly been monitored by the likes of Cagliari, Sunderland and Fulham in recent weeks.
Gargano, capped 47 times for Uruguay, joined Napoli in 2007 from Danubio and helped the club to win the 2011-12 Coppa Italia.
He played 199 games for Napoli and will now continue his Serie A career at Parma.
Gargano was initially linked with Parma at the start of last month after Inter opted not to offer him a prolonged stay at San Siro despite the player admitting an interest in remaining in Milan.
…
Bastian Schweinsteiger ended his international career on a winning note as Germany secured a 2-0 friendly victory over Finland in Monchengladbach.
A close-range finish from Olympic silver-medallist Max Meyer early in the second half and Paulus Arajuuri s late own-goal decided the game in the hosts favour, but it was the retiring Schweinsteiger who took centre stage.
In what was his 121st appearance for his country, the Manchester United midfielder completed 67 minutes and posed for a selfie with a pitch invader wearing a Schweinsteiger 7 shirt, before leaving the field to a standing ovation.
And the 32-year-old, who announced his intention to retire following Germany s elimination at Euro 2016, was reduced to tears as he addressed the crowd.
It means …
Championship side Burnley have signed one-time England midfielder Joey Barton on a one-year deal.
Barton moves to Burnley as a free agent, having left QPR at the end of last season upon his contract at Loftus Road expiring.
The 32-year-old was part of the Rangers side that won promotion from English football s second tier in the 2013-14 season.
Burnley manager Sean Dyche told the club s official website: I m delighted that we have Joey on board.
He was very respectful when speaking about our club at the end of last season and during the summer.
We had many conversations and He made it clear he was very interested in what we are about and that coming here was something he would consider.
He is player who is in demand and who othe…