Nat Coombs from ESPN UK and BBL Presenter on Sky Sports
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Skylar Smith and Brian Bosche are joined by Nat Coombs, Anchor at ESPN UK's The Nat Coombs Show and Presenter for the BBL on Sky Sports. They chat with Nat about how the NFL has grown in the UK, what it's like covering the BBL and NFL, and how he got his start in sports media. Skylar and Brian also talk about Giannis staying in Milwaukee, KD and Kyrie looking good in Brooklyn, the NBA Preseason, and the BBL Cup Quarterfinals.
Full Transcript:
Brian Bosche:
Hey, everyone. Welcome back to High Tea Hoops. This is Brian Bosche at the Duke of Hoops, and I am joined by the Duchess. What's up, Skylar?
Skylar Smith:
Hello, Brian. Super excited for today's interview.
Brian Bosche:
So we have a very interesting guest today, because we are Americans covering largely a British sport, for British basketball. And we have on today Nat Coombs, who is from the UK, covering an American sport. So a little switcheroo here. Nat, welcome to the show.
Nat Coombs:
Good to be on. You're right, it's like diametric opposites meeting.
Brian Bosche:
I know.
Nat Coombs:
It's like the episode of the A-Team when Hulk Hogan was on.
Brian Bosche:
You have a lot of American guests on to talk about American football. We have a lot of British guests on.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah.
Brian Bosche:
It's amazing.
Nat Coombs:
Well, this was inevitable. This was bound to happen. It was in the stars. I'm glad we've made it work.
Brian Bosche:
Exactly. And, before we get into the real questions, Skylar has one to kick us off that I'm super excited for.
Skylar Smith:
Honestly, I don't get to talk to football people on this podcast very often. And, honestly, a lot of the times when we're making these outlines for our podcast that we send to our guests, I'm truly just making myself giggle while I'm making the outline. And then I can go through and delete all the things that made me giggle that were not important. I figured I'd leave this one in for you, Nat. Did Lamar Jackson, did he really have cramps or was that a euphemism? And I do have to say, this is the second round of the question. The first round of the question was worse. So, you're welcome.
Nat Coombs:
So, that game was on late at night over in the UK. And I'm sure it's something we'll come back to, right? You know, being in love with American sports since I was a kid and that battle sometimes. So, that was a game that, initially, I didn't stay up for, right? And what I found that happens a lot of the time is, I'll still wake up anyway in the middle of the night and I'll get Game Pass and before you know it, I'm being sucked in. So, as it happened, that one I kind of woke up. In fact, going back a couple of weeks, on the night of the American election, there was a Thursday night football game, and the same thing happened. Where I was basically, woke up in the middle of the night, was listening to audio of the American election, and Thursday night football, that I think the 49ers were playing, if memory serves me correctly. So, I was basically kind of drifting in and out of consciousness, flipping between the American election coverage and Nick Mullins and Donald Trump got a fever dream was happening.
Brian Bosche:
[crosstalk 00:02:18] Yeah.
Skylar Smith:
I'm so sorry.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, that was a night I want to forget quickly. So the same kind of thing happened at this game. I turned on and I'm like, "God, this games sounds incredible." And I timed to perfection. So as I turned it on, I could hear the comms going, "Lamar's coming back out of the tunnel."
Skylar Smith:
Oh my God. That's amazing.
Nat Coombs:
It was amazing. So to put it all together, the next morning, when I don't stay up all night for a game, and I'm watching it back on Game Pass or whatever the next day all the way through, everything all kind of came together, right? And look, he in interviews afterwards said with a glint in his eye, "I wasn't doing a Paul Pierce." So I think I love that that is a thing that is now noted that [inaudible 00:02:56] is doing a Paul Pierce. But I am amazed it doesn't happen more often guys-
Skylar Smith:
Me too.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, all right. I mean, I think cramps, you're right. I think it is stretching the truth. Have you see the footage of him? Running around the [inaudible 00:03:08]
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. It is so funny. Just waddling, all the waddle.
Skylar Smith:
Yes, it makes it so obvious.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, exactly. He didn't think he grabbed to me. So-
Skylar Smith:
No.
Brian Bosche:
When he's going in the door, he like shoved someone aside so he could get in faster, and he's just like, "Get out of the way."
Skylar Smith:
"It's an emergency."
Nat Coombs:
Yeah. We've all been there, right? We can all sympathize with that. A lot of the broadcasts I do often are quite long without breaks and I'm amazed that that got as, and I've done on a personal level, but you know, I'm amazed that it doesn't happen more often with athletes. I know it doesn't.
Brian Bosche:
I did appreciate the Paul Pierce memes afterward.
Skylar Smith:
Yeah.
Brian Bosche:
[inaudible 00:03:45] slapping his face on.
Skylar Smith:
I'm loving that we can bring that back.
Brian Bosche:
In the wheelchair.
Nat Coombs:
Yes, I'm sure Paul Pierce is thrilled about that as well. Every time it is brought back. Yeah.
Brian Bosche:
All right. Let's get into some real questions. That was a real question, but before-
Skylar Smith:
What do you mean?
Brian Bosche:
Sorry, that was an absolutely real question.
Skylar Smith:
Thank you.
Brian Bosche:
And on brand for this podcast. All right, Nat. So you are on ESPN, on the Nat Coombs show, covering American football. You recently came on as presenter at Sky Sports, covering the BBL, which we're very excited for, can't wait to get into that more. But do you want to introduce yourself to the audience who may not know you?
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, well, I am as probably you might've guessed from that intro, a sports broadcaster and writer as well. I write for the Times as well, on NFL primarily and I have been for a long time. I guess I specialize in American sports, as I mentioned earlier on, as a kid, I just fell in love. I was always sports mad. So that is where that came from. And always fascinated by America. You know, my favorite comics were American, as in comedians, there was just a cultural resonance early on. Even literature, which I went to study, my favorite writers are all, pretty much anyway, American. So I've always been in love with America. And so it was inevitable I was going to end up involved in American sports, but I kind of stumbled into it. I wasn't an orthodox, "11 years old, I'm going to be a presenter." Even coming out of college, it wasn't-
Brian Bosche:
Yeah.
Nat Coombs:
I wasn't clear what I wanted to do, but I found my way eventually.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. Well, how did you get into your NFL gig covering the NFL for ESPN in the UK?
Nat Coombs:
Well, my NFL journey started as a broadcaster. God, back in 2007 was the first year I was doing it professionally, right? So I was really raw, and real rookie, and then I'd never done live television before. And my first year I was terrible, but I learned a hell of a lot. And I landed that gig. It was a kind of long journey to get there. There's maybe a misconception in it with some people that you can get into a spot that quickly. It's like so many things you just got to put a lot of graft and a lot of time, but I didn't start out saying, "I'm going to be a presenter." It was actually stand-up comedy, which is where my job-
Brian Bosche:
Wow.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah. And again with that, I didn't set out and thinking, "Well, I'm going to be a standup." I fell into that.
Brian Bosche:
Did you do stand up? I mean, Top Secret is one of our favorite comedy clubs in London. You ever hit up Top Secret?
Nat Coombs:
Never did Top Secret. So I gigged for four or five years pretty much straight out of uni. So I got to a pretty good level. You know, I was doing TV and radio spots and 20 minutes spots in clubs. And that was the beginning of it because I got signed by an agent through stand-up quite early on, I guess. So I'd been doing that maybe 18 months and I got signed by an agent, and it was pretty clear early on to me that I didn't want to... I wasn't going to be a lifelong standup. Like I enjoyed it, I had got so much out of it and it's been great grounding for me for a live presenting, but I just knew in my heart, it wasn't what I wanted to do.
Nat Coombs:
So I had one of those one of those phases that I guess we all have in life at some point, "What do I really want to do?" Got really existential, "Where am I going?" And I thought, "Look at sports, this is what I want to do. This is where I want to go." So it would be disingenuous to say I had to start from the beginning because I had an agent and I already had, I guess, opportunities. But-
Brian Bosche:
You were already a talent. They're like, "Nat Coombs, that guy's a talent."
Nat Coombs:
It gets shifted, yeah... They're using the term very, very loosely. I think at that stage, I always say that somebody is referring to you as the talent.
Brian Bosche:
I know, I love it too. "Where's the talent is he? He's late again."
Skylar Smith:
Brian loves it.
Brian Bosche:
That's 100% true.
Nat Coombs:
I think it comes... The moment you say the word, I think it has to come automatically with a simpatico eyebrow raise. Like, "Where's the talent." Otherwise, you're not allowed to say it, yeah. So yeah, that kind of helped a bit. And you know, I just took any gig I could. The advice I give to those, and there might be people out there now thinking about it and trying to get in, just be humble and just grind and take whatever gig you can. I think early on, I think that's really important because I remember getting...
Nat Coombs:
Actually, it was the first time I moved to ESPN. So I've actually worked with them twice. And the first time I'd already been hosting for a few years on telly and radio and a producer from ESPN got in touch and said, "Listen, we've got show and there's a spot on the show that we want you to do, but you know, I'm not sure be interested because you're presenting now, you're anchoring now. And it might be..." Essentially saying, it might be above your station-
Brian Bosche:
Too talented.
Nat Coombs:
Because I'm talent! That's what he said, because you're the talent! So I said, "Oh, well, what's the gig?" And it sounded great. And I said, "Sure, course, let's do it." And I did it for a couple of weeks, kind of guest spot thing, loved it. And about six months later, the same guy phoned me back and said, "Listen, our presenter is leaving the show. Do you want to anchor it?" So you just don't even go in with too many airs and graces and be above your station, even if you're talent.
Brian Bosche:
That's great advice.
Skylar Smith:
I'm intrigued by the NFL in the UK and how the NFL is... It's such a uniquely American thing. And so to have it be popular in the UK, I just have a couple questions for you that I'm just honestly dying to know. So what is the audience like for the NFL in the UK? Are NFL fans usually fans of all American sports?
Nat Coombs:
For my show, massive audiences... It's a really interesting question, right? So there've been two spikes, I guess. So when I was a kid and my generation, there was a spike. There's a whole generation of 30, 40 somethings that fell in love with it as a kid when it had a kind of first boost, and then it went dormant for a fair while and has had a second coming. And I think that is definitely linked to the international series, and I think that has been significant for all kinds of reasons, but I think it has created a momentum in terms of programming. I mean, I have my ESPN show dedicated to it, and there are other shows that are totally dedicated to NFL outside of the live programming, which just wouldn't have happened 10, 12 years ago.
Nat Coombs:
And certainly when I was starting out, it just wasn't the case. It was "Here's your live coverage." And that was it. I think digital has been a big part of it in the access to so much content, of course. So it's definitely still, I would say, a cult sport over here, the NFL. I don't think anyone involved with the NFL thinks it's going to supplant the Premier League. Not that it's trying to either. I think their rationale is, "Look, in the UK, football is still the King in terms of popularity, but there are so many sports that have a strong and sizable pocket of fans." And that's Formula 1, that's boxing, that's rugby, cricket, all of these sports. Some maybe have particular spikes because of certain events or tournaments. So like when Wimbledon's on, everybody's watching tennis for the fortnight.
Nat Coombs:
But so I think the NFL is kind of pretty happy with that. Your other question is a really interesting one. Yeah, I think there's a lot of crossover. I used to do a show for years called Americarnage, which was kind of early [Europod 00:11:21], which was a bunch of us. Originally, it was a format chair, a friend of mine said, "What kind of show would you do if you weren't on a national TV show? Like, what would you say if the cameras were off?" That was the starting point for the show. So it was a bit of an uncut, off the cuff, off the record kind of show. But there we talked American sports and pop culture and politics sometimes and all kinds of different things, but we put all the American sports together.
Nat Coombs:
So we talk NFL, MBA, baseball, hockey as well, sometimes a bit of college. And we found that whilst most fans had a favorite, most fans were crossing over to more than one and actually were introduced to other American sports because they come to the show because I love NFL or MBA and had found that baseball as well. So I think there is definitely an innate connection with the Brits who were into American sports that they just want more and more and more.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah, well, it's interesting. It's interesting. The MBA did such a good job with global growth and going international, and the NFL, I feel like, fell behind a little bit and I think they felt that, so it is good to see them investing more in Tottenham's new stadium, having more games over there, it's always a joke on our podcast in the States of Blake Bortles, is he the greatest British football player of all time?
Nat Coombs:
Hey!
Brian Bosche:
Because he would only play well in the UK during those games, but it's not really-
Nat Coombs:
You know, I've heard. I remember when... It's interesting on that actually, I think the NBA has actually been behind the NFL in the UK in terms of-
Brian Bosche:
Yeah, yeah, they feel that too?
Nat Coombs:
Yeah. But on the games there's often a joke, I think for many years, it's interesting watching how the international series played out in the States and chatting to my friends that are working in the media and sports media, over in the U.S., varying degrees of skepticism and I think cynicism initially with the whole thing. And even somebody who I massively admire and you listen to all the time, Bill Simmons. Simmons and Cousin Sal are always talking about what rubbish game of the Brits got again. Poor guys, but actually-
Brian Bosche:
Jaguars at Tennessee in London.
Nat Coombs:
Which was a great game! But-
Brian Bosche:
At 7:00 AM Pacific time.
Nat Coombs:
Right. As you guys know, sometimes often the matchup is kind of irrelevant. You can have a fantastic game, even if it's not necessarily a heavyweight team or significant one. And I think as well, it's not a case of we've been starved of live American sport for so long that we'll take anything. But at the same time, sure, if we're getting three or four games a year, great! We're just seeing football or NBA up close. I mean, of course we're going to enjoy that. So I think it's only going to continue to grow over here. I think it's entrenched in the psyche, but to suggest that it's the kind of big... Sometimes when I do spots in the States, if there's a London game, because I anchor... The games on in London, I anchor those for the BBC, right?
Nat Coombs:
And so as part of that job, I'll be asked to do various media ops with news channels in the States, right? Often relating to the teams that are playing. And there is this idea that, "Oh, if someone else who wants to know if Tom Brady was walking down the street, would he be recognized?" And it's like, "Well, no. I don't think..." He's not going to be mobbed in the same way that you take most Premier League footballers and put them into the [inaudible 00:14:52], they're not going to be recognized. That doesn't mean it doesn't have a fan base, you know? So yeah.
Skylar Smith:
I mean the NFL, like I said a little bit earlier, it's so distinctly American, I think of all the American leagues. Everything is big, it's very violent. The intro music is iconic. I'm not going to lie your voice talking about it to my ear, sounds a little funny. So how do Brits find this like very American element of consuming the game? Is it confusing? Is it funny? Is it honestly annoying? I kind of am thinking of it as like what we do with Love Island. Like we all kind of start doing the voices and we try to start using the phrases and stuff. Is it a similar thing?
Nat Coombs:
Yeah. It's a great question. I think there is a definite appreciation and affection for the bombast and the pomp and the ceremony. At the same time, a slightly kind of sarky, ironic British approach almost exactly the same time. But what I've found is I think there are a lot of Americans like that as well, right? You know that self-deprecating, you could see that, I see that. There's no doubt that a lot of our listeners and my ESPN show is very much geared at an international audience, but that's not because of... For example, you've ever heard the world feed for the super bowl. So whether it's NBC or whichever host broadcast is doing it, there'll also be an alternate world feed, which essentially dumbs the game down.
Nat Coombs:
We don't need to do that. If anything, actually, I think that the literacy of the fan base in the UK is extremely high. You know, I remember chatting to Greg Rosenthal about this when we're on the NFL network, who I've worked with a lot over the years and he was surprised, but nevertheless kind of said that the level of discussion topics we talked about, the interaction that the fans are giving, that it's up there with the smartest football shows in the States. I don't necessarily mean mine specifically, I mean just generally the football content over here. It's definitely not a case of us having to dumb it down, if anything, I guess because we're a long way away from it, there is an overcompensation sometimes. The show, how much we know... From a [caters 00:17:16] point of view, yeah, we definitely adopt an authentic, I think, with the language.
Nat Coombs:
And I know what you mean when I'm listening to an American show talking about the Premier League or European football, which I love as well, it... I guess it depends on the show, but there is definitely, initially, a kind of slightly jarring, and you're thinking this. But having said that, I think there are a lot of parallels there. If you look at how soccer is growing in the States and therefore broadcasting around it, I think that is changing as well. And that acceptance over here, you take your average soccer fan and play them an American broadcast of a Premier League. If they've got American voices on it, they'd find that a bit strange, I think, but it is gradually changing.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah.
Skylar Smith:
Yeah.
Brian Bosche:
Definitely. And to kind of switch gears a little bit to basketball because football, as we talked about, NBA is growing. It's not quite as established as even the NFL in the UK from our understanding of it in our conversations. And it's still growing, but let's shift gears a little bit to the BBL where, for the first time in over a decade, the British basketball league is back on TV, a new deal with Sky Sports. I think it's 30 games, right? And they brought in the heavy hitters, Nat Coombs, Kieron Achara, Mike Tuck.
Skylar Smith:
The talent!
Brian Bosche:
So much talent!
Nat Coombs:
They are the talent.
Brian Bosche:
It's unbelievable.
Nat Coombs:
Don't forget Drew Lasker as well.
Brian Bosche:
Drew Lasker?
Skylar Smith:
Drew Lasker?
Nat Coombs:
Lasker, who is... I tell you what, I've done a few shows. So we're going this Friday is going to be the third game we've done and I've realized I've got to up my trainer game or my sneaker game. On every level sartorially, I've got to step up and not [inaudible 00:18:58]. I mean, last game in particular, my God, he's got some game.
Brian Bosche:
And he's really talented in media as well, it's been fun to hear him on the BBL show and all the stuff that he's doing. And we had Rahmon Fletcher on, two time BBL MVP, his teammate.
Nat Coombs:
Right.
Brian Bosche:
And he was like, "Man, I wake up, Drew Lasker on Instagram. I go to sleep, Drew Lasker another Instagram post." Like he's all over the place.
Nat Coombs:
He's everywhere.
Brian Bosche:
But what do you think it means for basketball in the UK to have the BBL, kind of the home grown league back on TV and back in the spotlight a little more.
Nat Coombs:
Oh, it's absolutely massive. I mean, daddy, it can be under underestimated and the league needs it. You know, it absolutely needs it. And I think already... Look, it's early doors and nobody wants to get carried away, but I think we're ready, you can feel the energy. The kind of show that we wanted to put together. It was really clear to me from the beginning actually, that when I got approached about it, which was, the start of the summer is when conversations first were happening about it and the guys producing it, Buzz16, are a great crew. They're making it.
Brian Bosche:
Oh, amazing. The production value is incredible.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah. They had a really clear vision for what they wanted to do and that energy runs through the production team, runs through Drew and Kieron and Mike. Everybody involved with it, there... It's just a positive thing and that should be a given and it should be every project you're involved with, you begin to talk to people about, but it isn't always the way. And I think that will stand that the show and therefore the league in pretty good stead that there is a really positive energy about the whole thing.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. And borrowing from football or from the NFL where it is bigger than the NBA, it is bigger than basketball typically, and from what we've heard, what has football done well to grow that the niche group of people that are interested, that fandom that maybe the British Basketball League and the NBA can borrow from?
Nat Coombs:
It's a great question. I touched on it a little bit earlier. I think digital is really important and understanding that you've got to reach out increasingly through different channels systematically, and something I think that Buzz16 and Sky Sports and the BBL themselves realize with this that yes, it's fundamental to have the games live on Sky Sports, but there's going to be a massive either existing or potential audience out there that don't have Sky Sports. Can't afford it, uninterested, whatever reason. And you need to reach those fans and potential fans in lots of different ways. And I think it's also the type of content too, because doing a live game, as you guys know with your show, it's a very different medium. You can cover a lot of ground, get into lots of different things that you just simply can't on live broadcast.
Nat Coombs:
So the very podcasting space and using YouTube and using short form video clips with players about... I remember chatting to a friend of mine who works for NFL, and he's kind of quite high up on the international expansion of the NFL. And we were at a Superbowl a few years back and I was asking what he was doing that week at the Superbowl, and he was talking about all these different meetings he was having with broadcasters from so many different countries. And I said, "So what's the broadcast product like in different countries?" And he was explaining, and one of the things he said that was fascinating was he said in China, in particular, where they're obviously really trying to grow the NFL.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah.
Nat Coombs:
He said, "They are particularly interested in players showing a bit of themselves." So kind of like an MTV cribs thing essentially. That's what they love more than anything else. That's particularly what they want, right? God yeah, you got to really think about the things that resonate, the touch points with the different demographics, different countries. And that's the same, bringing it back to your question with the BBL. If we just put the show out on Sky, great, that's good, but where it's going to really gain traction and where basketball more broadly, I think, is going to gain a bigger fan base is by using lots of different channels and lots of different styles of content to do that.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. Is that why Mike Tuck just launched his TikTok account?
Nat Coombs:
100%. I mean, that [crosstalk 00:23:10].
Skylar Smith:
Brian somehow finds a way to bring up Mike Tuck every single pod.
Brian Bosche:
And TikTok usually.
Skylar Smith:
And TikTok.
Nat Coombs:
I think TikTok will be the singularly most important reason why the BBL, and indeed, the game of basketball grows in this country.
Brian Bosche:
I agree. London Lions just started their account. Shout out Lions. It's great.
Nat Coombs:
I've got to get on the TikTok, TikTok, TikTok, Tik... I can't even say it. I've got to get on the TikTokTik. I'm way behind on that, man. And I've got to get a move on that.
Skylar Smith:
You got to get on it.
Brian Bosche:
You got to get after that chance at the audience.
Nat Coombs:
Have you guys got a TikTok?
Brian Bosche:
Yes.
Skylar Smith:
Brian is the TikTok master.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. I have a lot of followers on TikTok.
Nat Coombs:
Have you? You got a big base. I've got to get moving on that.
Brian Bosche:
It's super effective. It's hard. I think it took me like the last year and a half to get to 320,000 followers.
Nat Coombs:
What?
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. But once you get there, if you're listening, you might not have known, I'm a TikTok celebrity. Talent right here.
Skylar Smith:
He is a TikTok talent.
Brian Bosche:
We're talking talent. [crosstalk 00:24:04]
Nat Coombs:
I didn't know you were a TikTok talent. That's amazing.
Brian Bosche:
But it is. I mean, it's super powerful. Even like the [inaudible 00:24:12], there's different communities, like we've talked about, where there is the NBA TikTok, there's basketball TikTok, there's NFL American football TikTok. Yeah, that's a good channel, and I think it's where Overtime is going, ESPN, all of these different providers are huge on TikTok. Because it's so good for the short form, getting to know a player, doing a highlight reel. There's so many formats you can fit into it. So yeah, I very much agree with your statement. Finding those channels to reach those new audiences is really important.
Nat Coombs:
I've got to practice what I preach now. The moment we finished this, I'm getting onto ESPN saying, "Where the hell is our show-"
Brian Bosche:
"Where's our TikTok?"
Nat Coombs:
What the hell is going on? I'm talent don't you know? Come on, talent!
Skylar Smith:
Get it rolling. So we were talking about what basketball can learn from the NFL and growing. And I talked a little bit earlier about how the NFL is so insanely American. I wonder for you what it's like to cover both of the sports, to cover the BBL and to cover the NFL. They seem so different that the BBL is British basketball, the NFL is so American. Are you code switching? But when you're going between covering these sports, what's it like to... Do you adopt different tones? What's it like to go between those sports?
Nat Coombs:
It's a great question. I guess I am a little bit, that there were so many similarities with what I do or parallels I should say. And then some fundamental differences. So if we start with the live stuff, that is almost interchangeable, right? From a technical point of view and how I approach that, and that's what I love, I think more than anything else is doing live sport, right? And that is what really drew me to the BBL gig in particular. Initially it was, "We're going to do 30 live games." It's like, "Right. Where do I sign? I'm in." That's great, and other stuff around it. Cool, interested. With the NFL, it's different, I guess for me, but you're right. The approach and the style is different depending on the format and the medium. So the ESPN show I do is still quite newsy, I guess.
Nat Coombs:
We take big topics and big subjects and talk about them. But as we were saying a bit earlier on, sometimes it's an hour and 20 minute part or anything between 45 minutes and that, and most of the guests that are on it, guys that have worked for a long time, that I have a good relationship with. So it's a different kind of vibe to doing a live structured show. So jumping between the types of shows I do between the two is distinct. In terms of the games themselves, for me is a kid growing up in Britain and being in love with American sports from as far back as I can remember, I guess I see them just automatically connected actually, even though the BBL is fundamentally different from the NFL in terms of scale and other obvious distinctions. To me they're really...
Nat Coombs:
I find it very similar. I think I've always been clear about what I wanted to do from fairly early on, in this journey and what I didn't want to do, right? And I thought, I love American sports and that maybe wasn't the smartest game plan at the start of my career. [inaudible 00:27:20] And I've been lucky in that respect that the NFL has blown up over here to the degree and things are kind of going in that direction. But I knew that's what I wanted to do and be involved with. So I kind of followed my instinct and followed my guns on that. But yeah, to have the BBL opportunity now and seeing where the potential for the league and where it can go, I think is really, really exciting.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah. And before we get into listener questions, which we have some fun ones, any fun anecdotes from being on with the crew so far? Any behind the scenes stuff you want to share? What kind of has impressed you about this BBL season and coverage so far?
Nat Coombs:
Well, I probably shouldn't say... I'll probably get in trouble for this, but disclaimer is throwing out. I throw that out now. So the first show, all right, which was a double header.
Brian Bosche:
Yep.
Nat Coombs:
So we did two games back to back from Newcastle, from Drew Lasker's Newcastle Eagles. And so we were on air at 4:30, right. Five o'clock tip off first game, and then about half an hour in between, 40 minutes. And then the second game. So long, our broadcasts, right? We got our fair in the end, I think about 9:30, 9:45, right? So this is a five hours plus live broadcast. So I'm in London. I live in London, the games in Newcastle. I got the train up in the morning with one of the bosses of Buzz who are producing the show. And we left in pretty good time.
Nat Coombs:
I should have known something was going to go wrong because I got to this station and bought a car. I went to a Joe & The Juice, got a coffee, a ridiculously colored smoothie shake kind of thing. And I stocked up well for the journey, I had them in a bag, the bag broke. So just within about 30 seconds of buying them. So just on the floor, this might be one of those days. So we were about an hour out of London and the train journey to Newcastle was maybe three hours, I guess, three and a half hours, right? The train stops, as you will find, trains will stop all the time in the UK for no reason whatsoever. We sat there for an hour. Yeah, you can see where this is going, and then it just trundled in backwards. So the train started moving the wrong way, so I said to Scott, "I think we're going the wrong way."
Nat Coombs:
And he just nodded. Didn't even say that it just kind of nodded like, "Oh boy." We trundled into Grantham, the station. And long story short, all trains canceled that day. We had to cab it, taxicab it, from Grantham to Newcastle. This is proper place, trains and automobiles, right? We got to Newcastle with about 40 minutes before we were meant to be live on air. So that first broadcast that we did we had no rehearsal. I mean-
Brian Bosche:
That's terrifying.
Nat Coombs:
It was [inaudible 00:00:30:15]. So the fact that we got through that, and this is credit to Mike, to Drew, to Kieron, to everybody behind the camera as well. I mean, heavyweights, we just had to get over that, and dealt with it
Brian Bosche:
It was authentic. It didn't seem rehearsed at all.
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, exactly. That was the plus side. So yeah. So that's already fun and games from... yeah.
Brian Bosche:
Seriously, I love that anecdote. All right. Let's get into some audience questions. We have Paul Nicholson friend of the pod came, on the podcast last week-
Skylar Smith:
Friend of the pod.
Brian Bosche:
So he's a coach at the Plymouth Raiders. And he asks, because he talked a lot about having to wear so many hats while you're working for a BBL team, "British basketball media has changed massively over the last few years, and we're finding that multiple people are trying their hand at new things to try to grow the sport. What advice would you give to media teams across the BBL who are not necessarily media people, but are trying something new and trying to grow through that method?" So love this question, Paul, I would love your insights here on that.
Nat Coombs:
That's a great question. You know, one of the things that we talked about when we started looking at the coverage for Sky was the XFL, right? So, and it sounds like I'm just saying this because I'm a company man, because ESPN had had the rights, but the XFL coverage and we had Tom Luginbill was one of the broadcast crew for it, for ESPN when the XFL was on earlier this year was one of our regulars on my show. So we paid close attention to it, I guess is what I'm saying. And they would do some really interesting stuff. You know, they were grabbing players as they were coming off the field and all kinds of other stuff that you wouldn't see on other broadcasts. And I think that's something that we've talked about with the BBL coverage and the XFL.
Nat Coombs:
Very supportive, I think, working with ESPN at the time to create the best product they could. And I think the BBL feel the same way. So I guess I just take that as an extension, think about things that perhaps you wouldn't see other sporting leagues or other teams try and do typically, and think about more left-field types of content. I think that's really key, and I think there is that potential there with the teams individually and the BBL collectively. It's an emerging sporting league. I mean, I know it's got a great history, but in the grand scheme of things, the league wants to get bigger and grow a bigger audience. And so obviously the teams do as well. So I think that there's a huge potential there to be a bit more creative, whereas bigger teams...
Nat Coombs:
You know, I remember when I was first for the ESPN, the show I did that I mentioned earlier on that I ended up posting. It was kind of a sports chat show, right? And it was kind of an irreverent... We have three studio guests, there'd be a comedian, there'd be an actor, that kind of thing. And the very first rehearsal we did, we actually rehearsed for that show, right? Rehearsal that we did, I had written a line that led into a package, right? Rehearsing the show, and I said, it was just after the 2010 world cup, right? And I'd said... It was a line along the lines of, "The 2010 world cup, which featured 714 of the world's best players and Gareth Barry." Was the line originally. And so we carried on and then at the end of the rehearsal, and there were loads of [soups 00:33:40] There as well in the gallery, like watching what was going on, it was kind of very much that kind of vibe.
Nat Coombs:
And the producer came over to me. He said, "Nat, brilliant, great stuff." And I said, "Thanks." And he goes, "Just one thing though, the Gareth Barry line. Can't say it." And I said, "Oh, okay. Gareth Barry's a good player. It's just a gag. I'm not..." And he goes, "No, no, I know, it's great. It's a great line. You can't say it." And I said, "Okay, no problem." And walked away really confused. I thought they wanted like an irreverent... You know, I thought that's the kind of thing they wanted. Was it a bad thing to do, don't think it was funny? Months later we're having a beer. And I said, "I've got ask you now the very first show we did, and you cut that line. Was it just a rubbish line? Is that what?" He goes, "No, no, I loved it."
Nat Coombs:
And I said, "Well, why couldn't I use it?" And he said, "Oh, well, because we had a media opportunity with Manchester city in like two weeks time. And if that line had gone out, it would've really annoyed them." And I said, "Ah, okay, now I get it." So I'm starting to see it. I think those constraints that you have, if you're working with the Premier League or the NFL and what you can, and can't do. I think you can be a little bit more left field with the emerging league. So that would be my advice, I think.
Brian Bosche:
That's great advice. Thanks for the question.
Skylar Smith:
Yeah. I love that advice. All right. We'll finish up on one more audience question. And these are my favorite types of audience questions. They're the ones where I'm assuming it's from a friend of yours-
Brian Bosche:
Or a fan. [crosstalk 00:35:04]
Skylar Smith:
And they just make no sense to Brian and I, which is fun.
Nat Coombs:
Okay. Oh god, this sounds ominous.
Skylar Smith:
So from, @Minnesota_UK, could you beat Michael Carlson at Risk?
Nat Coombs:
Okay. Boy, could I beat Mike Carlson at Risk? [crosstalk 00:35:21]
Brian Bosche:
Why is he your dad?
Nat Coombs:
What?
Brian Bosche:
On Twitter, his bio is "Nat's dad."
Nat Coombs:
Because his son is also called Nat.
Brian Bosche:
Okay good, so he's not referencing you.
Nat Coombs:
He's not actually my dad. A different Nat.
Brian Bosche:
It's like, "Nat, I'm your father. Your talent and I'm your father."
Nat Coombs:
Yeah, every time. So Mike is someone I've worked with for years and he used to have a line every time, any player called Nat or Nate, he would throw whatever the context he was saying. It would say nice name Nat. So they, Washington had a touchdown, nice name Nat just-
Skylar Smith:
Just throw it in.
Nat Coombs:
Just throw it in wherever, whatever you're doing. So yeah, Mike is someone I've worked with for a long time, a longtime collaborator. We're kind of, I guess worked together a lot on NFL coverage, still irregular on my ESPN show. And we're kind of an odd couple vibe, I guess that he is American, lived over here for a long time, quite unreconstructed, old school Clint Eastwood style in many ways. So we're actually, someone once compared us to, remember the movie with Eastwood and Charlie Sheen? I should be careful where I go with this, but with Charlie Sheen and clearly so called the rookie, right? Which is basically a Sheen is a rookie cop, and Eastwood is the skeptical grizzled old vet. That's me and Carlson-
Brian Bosche:
That example wouldn't work well on TikTok, by the way, just so you know. Wrong audience.
Skylar Smith:
That was too old for me, and I am too old for TikTok, so that will not work on TikTok.
Nat Coombs:
I have no chance.
Brian Bosche:
All right, answer the question Nat, can you beat him or not?
Skylar Smith:
I feel like you're deflecting. We want to know if you can beat him at Risk.
Nat Coombs:
I think I would be able to, because I think he's genuinely naturally a better, more talented player, but I would be able to distract him mainly with conversation points about himself. I would just get him because Mike loves to, just get him to talk about himself, distract him constantly, maybe cheat as well as I'm doing that. And then I'd have a fighting chance, but he's very competitive. So I think I wouldn't have the... To win at Risk, you got to be really, really ruthless. And I think I'd probably start well and then fade fast. So if I couldn't get my distracting tactics on, I think Mike would win.
Brian Bosche:
Yeah, almost like the Pittsburgh Steelers starting strong, fading as time goes on. Thank you so much for coming on Nat. We appreciate it.
Skylar Smith:
Thank you, Nat.
Nat Coombs:
It's been an absolute pleasure guys. Thanks for having me.
Brian Bosche:
Thanks.
