Jemele Hill's First Post-ESPN Gig Is Working With LeBron James

Jemele Hill is taking her talents from ESPN to Showtime.

The former SportsCenter anchor, who had her last day at the network on Friday, will narrate Shut Up and Dribble – a basketball documentary by LeBron James – as her first post-ESPN gig.

Directed by Gotham Chopra of Tom vs. Time notoriety, the three-part series originally had Hill signed on an interviewee, but her public criticism of President Trump following the violence in Charlottesville and the subsequent fallout from that made her a natural fit as the narrator.

Appreciate the opportunity. Although I don’t have hops, this is quite the alley oop ✊🏾 https://t.co/w37uEBaedr

— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 19, 2018

“I think LeBron, like a lot of people, has been very frustrated by the behavior of this administration,” Hill told The Hollywood Reporter. “[Black Americans] feel very insulted and vulnerable within this time because of who’s in charge.”

Featuring interviews with everyone from Charles Barkley and Kevin Durant to Jay Z and Justin Timberlake, the series will touch on political issues and the inequality between men and women.

“Lately LeBron has talked about gender and wanting to uplift and position black women in particular,” Hill said. “I get the sense that this is all part of that. He was raised by a black woman, he is married to a black woman and he is raising a black woman. If you look at the societal ladder, black women remain on the lowest rung. He clearly understands that we are facing a unique battle. It means a lot that he understands the intricacies of that.”

Also, see my comments in this piece about how @KingJames is a driving force in the gender conversation, especially when it comes to amplifying black women https://t.co/qOmfx4Tls8

— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 19, 2018