June 25, 2025
Taylor will join analysts Carmelo Anthony and Vince Carter as she leads NBC Sports’ NBA coverage for the 2025-26 season.
As fans await the tip-off of the 2025-26 basketball season, NBC Sports has tapped Maria Taylor as lead studio host to cover forthcoming NBA games.
Taylor, who already works with the network as host of “Football Night in America” and a contributor to the network’s Olympic coverage, will join analysts Carmelo Anthony and Vince Carter to host NBC’s studio shows on Sundays and Tuesdays. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 38-year-old sportscaster will also cover select WNBA games when the season begins in 2026.
“I’m deeply honored to be part of NBC Sports’ incredible legacy covering the NBA and to return to the game that first captured my heart, women’s basketball,” said Taylor. “To know that I’ll spend the next five years with my NBC family telling the stories of the Super Bowl, the Olympics, the NBA Playoffs, and the WNBA Finals is more than a dream come true — it’s a full-circle moment.”
Taylor joined NBC in 2021 after she left ESPN’s “NBA Countdown.” As previously covered by BLACK ENTERPRISE, ESPN offered the sportscaster a raise worth millions in 2021 following an incident with a white colleague who allegedly stated the sports channel only hired Taylor due to pressure surrounding its “crappy longtime record on diversity.” NBC Sports Executive Producer Sam Flood said Taylor has proven her ability to lead through her previous work with the network’s high-profile programs. “I’m excited to see her bring that same leadership and energy to this new team with Carmelo and Vince, as they build chemistry and set the stage for primetime NBA basketball each week, and the WNBA beginning next year,” said Flood.
The announcement comes in the wake of NBCUniversal’s return as an NBA partner. In July 2024, NBCUniversal and the NBA announced an 11-year agreement to present NBA and WNBA regular-season and playoff basketball games starting later this year. As the NBA returns to the NBC Sports family, the network plans to continue its nearly two-decade tradition of premium Sunday night sports coverage with a new Sunday Night Basketball NBA series scheduled at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock. Each tip-off will premiere following a one-hour pregame show. The media and entertainment company stated that Tuesday nights will feature a “unique NBA regular-season doubleheader” at 8 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. PT.
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