photo by steed media service

Renardo Lowe was but a prepubescent when dreams of becoming an Atlanta Braves shortstop began dancing in his brain. He’d watch spellbound, a willing captive to the electrifying theater spilling out of the television, as legendary sports announcer Marv Albert announced Michael Jordan’s signature games, and envisioned himself performing similar aerial acrobatics. Today, that dream has come true for the Atlanta native and Howard graduate, albeit in a different yet equally thrilling way — as the director for Turner Sports.

“It’s kind of funny to me that I would end up being on the same crew with Marv, when I grew up watching his calls of Jordan’s championships,” he says on the set of the Emmy Award-winning “NBA on TNT,”for which he provides creative and visual direction. “And sometimes I still have to pinch myself because it’s a really cool job to have.”

Lowe works with the incomparable sports broadcasting team of Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and the loquacious Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. The former intern for BET began his 14-year Turner Sports career pulling cable cords, but now he can be found in the production trucks in Boston or Los Angeles providing presentations, highlight packages, unique camera angles and unprecedented access to NBA insiders. Lowe admonishes fans to strap themselves in, because more excitement is in store.

“We’re going to be focusing more on GMs [general managers]. We want to get into [the] heads of superstars, great coaches and [especially] GMs,” he says. “How many people who watch the game know what a GM does day-to-day ... what decisions they make? Coaches are measured by wins and losses, and players by points, rebounds and assists. But how do you measure a GM’s success?”

With Lowe’s direction, NBA fans will soon find out. –terry shropshire

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