Skip Bayless, over the years, has become one of the most recognizable NBA analysts around. Bayless started his career back in 1989 with ESPN and has been involved with multiple TV networks and shows over the years. While he has consistently found himself in high demand over the years, this was not always true. As a matter of fact, Bayless was out of options toward the start of his career. According to his podcast The Skip Bayless Show, he once roasted an ESPN show “Cold Pizza” along with his friends. A month later, Bayless ended up getting an opportunity to be a part of the program, which led to him moving to New York.
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Bayless joined Cold Pizza in 2004 and brought on a much-needed analyst perspective to it. It ultimately proved successful, with a couple of segments even making it to ESPN’s First Take. Bayless’ success eventually resulted in roles on shows such as Undisputed and First Take. An infamous LeBron James criticizer since right from the start of his career, Bayless owes much of his success to Cold Pizza. He might never have had the platform to air his thoughts on LeBron, if he didn’t get the opportunity, despite his inherent hatred for the ESPN offering.
Skip Bayless criticized Cold Pizza a month before joining the ESPN show
During his podcast, Bayless talked about the origins of First Take. The show was recently taken off the TV schedule by ESPN and has its origins connected with Cold Pizza.
Cold Pizza aired on ESPN2 from 2003-2007, and had a couple of its segments carry over to First Take. Bayless joined the show in 2004 but believed that it was very embarrassing.
The TV personality had actually criticized the show in front of his friends a few weeks earlier. He shouted out at his friends who were downstairs and asked them to tune into ESPN2. A month later, he was asked by Mark Shapiro to help him save the show:
“I thought it was so bad because it was so different to anything I had ever seen on Sports Television. I yelled down the stairs, “hey guys, turn on ESPN 2 right now and check out this show called Cold Pizza. It’s so bad it’s embarrassing. That’s quote-unquote. Would you believe a month later, I was hired to be on this show. A month later, I received a call that said, Hey, I need you to come down and save my baby.”
What if they pulled the plug on First Take? I walk you through the history of the show, its conception and why it almost didn’t make it at all:pic.twitter.com/XTVa9DrEVj
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) July 21, 2023
Skip has been a staunch critic of LeBron James right from the start
Even during his Cold Pizza days, Bayless never believed in the LeBron James hype. He has been the staunchest critic of the Lakers’ superstar over the years, sometimes even being disrespectful.
Speaking on his podcast, Bayless said that he does not hate James, but the misconception that he is the greatest player of all time. Bayless has never been shy of criticizing James and has delivered some terrible takes over the years.
This includes the time when he said that James was not a first-ballot Hall of Famer, according to ESPN. While James might not be the GOAT, especially according to Bayless, he certainly deserves to be inducted into the Hall of Fame once he retires.
