The final bomb has been dropped. When the dust settled, Adrian Wojnarowski, beloved NBA insider and analyst for ESPN, announced his retirement. Wojnarowski is leaving behind $20 million and three years remaining on his deal.
Wojnarowski retires from his role at ESPN after seven years of working for the company. He is now taking a few steps back to be the general manager of the basketball program at his alma mater, St. Bonaventure University, in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Wojnarowski had a long journey getting to this point in his career. He grew up in Bristol, Conn., home of ESPN’s headquarters. Some might call it faith but for Wojnarowski, hard work and dedication got him to the top of his career.
He started at The Record in Bergen County, N.J., where he wrote sports columns in the paper. He then landed a job at Yahoo Sports in 2007 where he would write an NBA column. Wojnarowski helped Yahoo’s standalone NBA site and served as the editor.
At Yahoo Sports, Wojnarowski highlighted his style of reporting. He started to build his pool of sources and had the quickest access to NBA news before anyone else did. ESPN saw Wojnarowski’s strength and hired him as the senior NBA insider.
Wojnarowski went to ESPN in 2017. He made his first appearance on a midnight edition of SportsCenter. This move to ESPN propelled him into superstardom where he became a beloved analyst. Wojnarowski helped overhaul and improve ESPN’s coverage of the NBA draft, breaking news on X before it was announced anywhere else.
Wojnarowski became known for his signature way of dropping news about the NBA, fans calling it “Woj bomb.” Compared to traditionally breaking news through a newspaper, he got it straight to the public as quickly as possible through tweets. While everyone else was scrambling to break the news and verify sources, Wojnarowski was always first and reported accurate information.
The announcement of his retirement came in true Wojnarowski fashion, a post on X, where he dropped his final “Woj bomb” of his career. The general manager job at St. Bonaventure for Wojnarowski is really a dream come true.
“This craft transformed my life, but I’ve decided to retire from ESPN and the news industry. I understand the commitment required in my role and it’s an investment that I’m no longer driven to make. Time isn’t in endless supply and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful,” said Wojnarowksi in his retirement announcement on X.
At St. Bonaventure, Wojnarowski will be managing the transfer portal. This role is crucial for college basketball to get recruits from different colleges. He will also manage the name, image and likeness deals; program fundraising; and player, family and alumni relationships.
As an important figure in the basketball community, Wojnarowski’s arrival at St. Bonaventure will not only bring more attention and resources to the Bonnies, but it will also shine a light on and elevate the A-10 conference as a whole.
Wojnarowski’s unmatched work ethic and style of reporting set him apart from the rest. His coverage online and on ESPN will be missed by fans.
