{"id":9800,"date":"2023-07-07T00:31:47","date_gmt":"2023-07-07T05:31:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/?p=9800"},"modified":"2023-07-07T00:31:47","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T05:31:47","slug":"skip-bayless-reportedly-taking-extended-hiatus-from-undisputed-due-to-struggles-finding-replacement-for-shannon-sharpe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/skip-bayless-reportedly-taking-extended-hiatus-from-undisputed-due-to-struggles-finding-replacement-for-shannon-sharpe\/","title":{"rendered":"Skip Bayless reportedly taking extended hiatus from \u2018Undisputed\u2019 due to struggles finding replacement for Shannon Sharpe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Skip Bayless<\/strong> is reportedly taking an extended hiatus from Fox Sports 1\u2019s Undisputed<\/em> amid a struggle to find a replacement for Shannon Sharpe<\/a>, according to Mike McCarthy of Front Office Sports.<\/p>\n

Sharpe wrapped up his duties as Bayless\u2019 cohost after the 2023 NBA Finals, ending a seven-year partnership with the controversial hot take artist. The two were paired after Bayless left ESPN\u2019s First Take<\/em>.<\/p>\n

After the sudden departure of Sharpe, there\u2019s no clear direction for Bayless and the show, leading to the rest of the summer off.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut like many of Bayless\u2019 statements, it\u2019s not accurate, sources tell Front Office Sports,\u201d McCarthy wrote<\/a>. \u201cThere are plenty of potential Sharpe successors, ranging from the laid-off Keyshawn Johnson and Max Kellerman at ESPN to FS1 personalities LeSean McCoy, Nick Wright, Emmanuel Acho and Joy Taylor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut not many on-air talents want to take the hot seat opposite the domineering Bayless. To make matters worse, Bayless has the final say on everything internally at Undisputed<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statement referred to by McCarthy was Bayless taking to Twitter.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeBron isn\u2019t the only one in the lab this summer,\u201d he wrote. \u201cCan\u2019t wait to unveil \u2018Undisputed\u2019 just in time for football season.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON the surface, one can\u2019t blame Bay;ess for taking time off during these months, where the biggest sports topics dry up until football resumes with training camp at the end of the July and ramps up in mid-August.<\/p>\n

McCarthy also reported Bayless would prefer to reunite with Stephen A. Smith, the original pairing on First Take<\/em>. Basically, the search for Sharpe\u2019s replacement hit a \u201cgridlock,\u201d per the report. Obviously, reuniting with Smith seems like a fantasy with the amount of control Smith has at ESPN.<\/p>\n

\u201cShannon\u2019s exit moved way faster than they expected,\u201d the source said to McCarthy. \u201cSo they had no choice but to go on hiatus. Skip has never done anything like this during all his years at FS1 or ESPN. Not being on the air during all these NBA moves is killing him.\u201d<\/p>\n

If Bayless has a hope at resurrecting the show, McCarthy reported Undisputed<\/em> could go the way of rotating cohosts like First Take<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother reason for the delay could be that Bayless and FS1 are scrapping the mano-a-mano style of the show,\u201d McCarthy wrote. \u201cInstead, Bayless could replicate Smith\u2019s formula at First Take<\/em>, where he debates a rotating series of guests ranging from Chris \u201cMad Dog\u201d Russo to JJ Redick.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be a stretch. The rigidly disciplined Bayless has been basically following the same format for 15 years. But it would be an insurance policy for Bayless preventing any debate partner like Sharpe from approaching him in popularity or power again.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the report states, FS1\u2019s morning show needs something considering the ratings battle. As of June, First Take\u2019s<\/em> estimated audience was 421,000 viewers compared to Undisputed\u2019s<\/em> 154,000.<\/p>\n

The post Skip Bayless reportedly taking extended hiatus from \u2018Undisputed\u2019 due to struggles finding replacement for Shannon Sharpe<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Skip Bayless is reportedly taking an extended hiatus from Fox Sports 1\u2019s Undisputed amid a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9800"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9800\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}