NBA

Exclusive | NBA voice Kevin O’Connor leaving The Ringer for Yahoo Sports

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3 months ago

September 12, 2024

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Exclusive | NBA voice Kevin O’Connor leaving The Ringer for Yahoo Sports

NBA writer and podcaster Kevin O’Connor is leaving The Ringer after eight years.

O’Connor is slated to join Yahoo Sports, which has heavily revamped in recent months, The Post has learned.

O’Connor had been with The Ringer since 2016, the year it was founded, and he has become an established voice in the NBA conversation, unafraid to take strong stances in the face of social media backlash.

“The best personalities in sports media today are the ones who can reach fans on multiple platforms – and Kevin has that unique skill,” Sam Farber, Yahoo Sports Head of Content, said. “He’s an exceptional writer and podcaster, and tremendous on social and video, making him a perfect fit for what we’re building at Yahoo Sports. We couldn’t be more fired up to have him join the team.”

Kevin O’Connor is leaving The Ringer for Yahoo Kevin O’Connor/Instagram

People react to O’Connor’s stories, and the “Mismatch” podcast that O’Connor co-hosts with longtime Memphis-area personality Chris Vernon has had a devoted following for years.

“Kevin O’Connor has been an integral part of Ringer’s NBA coverage, and we’re grateful for all the work he’s done. We’ll be announcing a new slate of Ringer talent in the coming weeks,” a spokesperson for Spotify, the parent company of The Ringer, told The Post in a statement.

The Post reported earlier Thursday that former ESPN star Todd McShay is in serious talks to join The Ringer.

A deal has not been finalized.

Yahoo Sports has been on a recent acquisition spree under Farber and Ryan Spoon.

Spoon previously was senior VP of digital and social at ESPN and the COO of BetMGM.

Yahoo Sports brought him in as president last July.

They recently hired top MMA voice Ariel Helwani, and have built the “Uncrowned” vertical to cover UFC as well as boxing and WWE.

Former Athletic and MMA Fighting editor Shaheen Al-Shatti was named the editor-in-chief, and writers Chuck Mindenhall and Ben Fowlkes were added to the staff.

Yahoo also made former college quarterback Nate Tice, a football analyst who had been splitting time with them and at The Athletic, full-time under their umbrella this past May.

The private equity firm Apollo Global Management acquired Yahoo from Verizon in 2021.