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Tired, Minnesota? The ESPNs and TNTs of the world don't care about you

The ESPNs and TNTs of the world couldn't care less about your sleep.

Joe Nelson

Tired, Minnesota? The ESPNs and TNTs of the world don't care about you
Tired, Minnesota? The ESPNs and TNTs of the world don't care about you /

Minnesota sports fans are short on sleep this week and they have more long nights in their future, all thanks to the NBA and NHL pushing playoff start times deep into the night to satisfy the bloodthirsty, money-sucking television stations looking to cash in on the lucrative East Coast market.

On Sunday, Game 1 between the Timberwolves and Nuggets didn't tip off until 9:50 p.m. CT and the game didn't end until after midnight. After a short night of sleep followed by a day of work, school and parenting, fans tuned in for Game 1 between the Wild and Stars, though the opening puck didn't drop until 8:50 p.m. CT.

By the time Ryan Hartman scored the winning goal in double overtime, the clock had struck 1:01 a.m. CT. Those who stayed up for the entire game probably slept 4-6 hours before starting over Tuesday, which is basically a rest day for fans before Wednesday's slate of action that'll have the Wild and Stars again starting around 8:50 p.m. while the Timberwolves and Nuggets won't tip off until after 9 p.m. 

"We got to have some respect for the fans at some point. It ain't fair for the people in Denver to be playing at 8:30 at night and they got to go to school tomorrow," said Charles Barkley before Sunday's Game 1. 

Barkley hit the nail on the head, but those late starts are even harder on people in the Central Time Zone, and if you happen to be a Minnesota or Dallas fan on Eastern Standard Time, you're really up the creek. 

Had the Wild-Stars started at 7 p.m. like regular season games, it could've gone to double overtime and been over by 11:15 p.m. That's a heckuva lot more reasonable for fans – especially kids who want to watch the biggest moments but also need more sleep to fully function at school – to accept.

Michael Russo, the popular Minnesota Wild and NHL reporter, didn't leave the arena in Dallas until 4 a.m., which he said is "Total BS." 

"Most kids/adults couldn't stay up til 1 am to watch classic on TV," Russo tweeted. "Writers shouldn't have to leave the arena at 4 am."

If the home team is based in Mountain or Pacific time zones, then late starts make sense because when it's 9 p.m. in Minnesota or Dallas, it's 7 p.m. in Los Angeles and Seattle. But when both teams are in the Central Time Zone and they still get bumped to the late slot for national TV purposes, then it's a slap in the face to local fans who spent time and money supporting their favorite team all season long.  

Here's an idea. Since local broadcast partners like Bally Sports North are allowed to televise first-round playoff games but nothing beyond, then the local partners should dictate start times rather than bowing down to ESPN and TNT, who are cashing in on advertising dollars at the expense of the weary public. 

Wednesday's 9 p.m. start is just a placeholder for the Wolves and Nuggets. The reality is that because the game is on national TV, it won't start until the first game of TNT's doubleheader goes final.

The first game is the Lakers and Grizzlies. While Memphis is also in the Central Time Zone, it gets the earlier start presumably so the East Coast can tune in for LeBron and the Lakers.

If the game goes long, Minnesota fans will be left watching the long hand on the clock slowly tick closer to 9:30 p.m. (which will be 8:30 p.m. – again – in Denver) before Karl-Anthony Towns and Nikola Jokic meet at center court for the opening tip. 

Game 3 Friday between the Wild and Stars is in St. Paul, but just like Games 1 and 2 it'll start close to 9 p.m., all because of the national TV doubleheader on TBS. The first game, which starts at 6 p.m. CT, is between Carolina and New York. If that goes long, the start time probably gets delayed. 

The only time Wild fans are going to catch a break is on Sunday when Game 4 starts at 5:30 p.m., and that's only because it's a weekend and the big networks are willing to play games earlier. 

Game 3 Friday between the Wolves and Nuggets is in Minneapolis, but that's not going to start until close to 9 p.m. again because it's the second game of ESPN's doubleheader. Games involving Eastern Time teams (Cavs–Knicks; Hawks-Celtics) get the earlier starts on Friday.

Even Sunday's Game 4 in Minneapolis doesn't start until 8:30 p.m. because, again, it's the back end of a doubleheader on TNT – again behind Celtics-Hawks.

If the Timberwolves advance to the second round, Bally Sports North is out of the picture and the national broadcasters will again control the schedule. And if the Wolves advance, they'll face the Los Angeles Clippers or Phoenix Suns, which means start times earlier than 8:30 p.m. CT will not happen unless a game falls on a weekend. 

It's the same song and dance for the Wild because if they advance to the second round they'll play Colorado or Seattle. 

Rest up, Minnesota. Big Media doesn't respect you and they never will. 

Published
Joe Nelson
JOE NELSON

Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen.  His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011.  Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play.  Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers.  Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17. 

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