SAN FRANCISCO — Renee Montgomery has several roles to juggle. She is a studio analyst for USA Network’s WNBA coverage, manages a production company, leads her own foundation, and is launching a new podcast, Checkmate, in November.
She’s also the co-owner of the Atlanta Dream, one of the franchises competing in the WNBA Finals—which she will be covering. USA Network will air the WNBA Finals for the first time, broadcasting Games 2, 3, 5, and 6.
Given she has a stake in one of the two Finals teams, people could assume she is biased. She’s often at Dream home games and was on the sidelines celebrating with the players when they clinched a spot in the Finals last week. (USA Network did not air any of the semifinal series.)
But Montgomery, who played 11 years in the WNBA, says she leverages her experience as a player to analyze games without bias.
“I love the sport so much that you have to cover it a certain way,” Montgomery told Front Office Sports. “Like I understand the effort, I understand the grind, I understand all the sacrifice that went into a player having a good game. So whether or not that player is playing for the Atlanta Dream doesn’t matter. I have to analyze the game for what I see.”
She told FOS there aren’t any rules imposed on her by USA Network or her other employers. A source with USA Network confirmed to FOS that she has no restrictions.
“I’m sure that if I had companies that I worked for that felt like there was a bias, I’m sure that they would let me know,” Montgomery said.
She said it might be different if she was calling games because play-by-play commentators and game analysts are generally present at each game and can therefore talk to players and coaches at shootaround or pregame.
In the NFL, Tom Brady, a game analyst for FOX, is a part-owner of the Raiders. The NFL restricts him from entering practice facilities or attending other teams’ practices, though he is allowed to call Las Vegas games.
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