Dick Vitale retired as a coach before conquering media; Lisa Salters is still with ESPN and watched by millions

Lisa Salters

The ABC broadcast of NBA Game 2 on Sunday night will look a bit different, as sideline reporter Lisa Salters is being replaced by Jorge Sedano.

An ESPN spokesperson told Ryan Glasspiegel of Front Office Sports that Salters is not working Game 2 between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder due to a “personal matter.”

“Lisa is attending to a personal matter. We send her our best,” ESPN said in a statement.

Lisa Salters’ ESPN’s coverage of the NBA Finals was due to her mother’s health concerns, prompting her to return home to be with her; accompanied by her partner, Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White.

Salters had been notably missing since the Oklahoma City Thunder’s victory over the Indiana Pacers, which featured Tyrese Haliburton’s game-winning performance. Concurrently, White skipped a game coaching the Fever to join Salters during this family time, as confirmed by an official statement. The woman is somewhat diminutive. She played hoops at Penn State.

ESPN loves Dickie Vickie V

On his 86th birthday, Dick Vitale agreed to a new extension with ESPN that will keep him with the network through the 2027-28 season. That deal puts Vitale on track to reach the 50-year mark with the Worldwide Leader and maybe even call games as a 90-year-old.

“Dick is the heart of college basketball, and his kindness, generosity, and courage are a constant inspiration to us all,” said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. “Through the creation of the Dick Vitale Invitational, we will celebrate him and his profound impact on the sport. We are also thrilled that Dick will remain a signature voice on ESPN through the 2027-28 season.”

He doesn’t stop talking proudly about all the charity work he does happily and how willingly, the many millions he’s raised on his active role on the board of the V Foundation.

I love pioneers. And college basketball’s Dick Vitale is one whose personality and energy have never faded. He’s an announcer, the likes of the NFL’s John Madden, MLB’s Joe Garagiola and the NHL’s Barry Melrose. They can all talk up their respective sport as no one else can. Yes, genuine ambassadors are like nothing contrived. Their relationships with their viewers are best described as electrical and entertaining. 

When it comes to college basketball, Vitale was a perfect match for a perfect time, 1979. Coming off the Magic Johnson-Larry Bird, Indiana State-Michigan State.

The title game Americans grew an appetite for college ball. But the three legacy networks ABC, CBS and NBC wouldn’t touch it, not night after night. ESPN, still in the cradle, born in September ’79, operated on a shoestring. So with nothing in the can and little money to spend, the Bristolites gobbled up college basketball and winter nights were never the same. Television across America is filled with hoops.

With the new-found visibility of ESPN, the fledgling Big East became a giant, an ACC a monster, and the unique Vitale the face of it all. Other conferences would emerge further, the Big Ten and the Pac-10. Only aficionados would know names like Marv Harshman and Pete Newell, other than the famous John Wooden.

Dickie V went to work with bells ringing. He traveled to arenas, large and small, well before tip-off, to greet all; Vitale became part of America’s growing college hoops’ tapestry.

He doesn’t stop talking proudly about all the charity work he does happily and how willingly, the many millions he’s raised on his active role on the board of the V Foundation.

I love pioneers. And college basketball’s Dick Vitale is one whose personality and energy have never faded. He’s an announcer, the likes of the NFL’s John Madden, MLB’s Joe Garagiola and the NHL’s Barry Melrose. They can all talk up their respective sport as no one else can. Yes, genuine ambassadors are like nothing contrived. Their relationships with their viewers are best described as electrical and entertaining. 

When it comes to college basketball, Vitale was a perfect match for a perfect time, 1979. Coming off the Magic Johnson-Larry Bird, Indiana State-Michigan State.

The title game Americans grew an appetite for college ball. But the three legacy networks ABC, CBS and NBC wouldn’t touch it, not night after night. ESPN, still in the cradle, born in September ’79, operated on a shoestring. So with nothing in the can and little money to spend, the Bristolites gobbled up college basketball and winter nights were never the same. Television across America is filled with hoops.

With the new-found visibility of ESPN, the fledgling Big East became a giant, an ACC a monster, and the unique Vitale the face of it all. Other conferences would emerge further, the Big Ten and the Pac-10. Only aficionados would know names like Marv Harshman and Pete Newell, other than the famous John Wooden.

Dickie V went to work with bells ringing. He traveled to arenas, large and small, well before tip-off, to greet all; Vitale became part of America’s growing college hoops’ tapestry.

Lisa Salters

Lisa Salters’ absence from ESPN’s coverage of the NBA Finals was due to her mother’s health concerns, prompting her to return home to be with her, accompanied by her partner, Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White.

Salters had been notably missing since the Oklahoma City Thunder’s victory over the Indiana Pacers, which featured Tyrese Haliburton’s game-winning performance. Concurrently, White skipped a game coaching the Fever to join Salters during this family time, as confirmed by an official statement. 

ESPN announced Monday that Vitale has signed a contract through the 2027-28 season, while ESPN Events is launching the Dick Vitale Invitational. The first matchup is a season-opening tilt between Duke and Texas on Nov. 4 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Decisions by network administrators on who will stay others staffers who toil away for broadcast ESPN, CBS and NBC are to bet determined. Lots of Lots these folks are still active.