NBC Sports Boston to feature all-female broadcast for Celtics-Nets celebrating Women’s History Month originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
NBC Sports Boston is partnering with the Connecticut Sun and Boston Celtics again this year to produce its second-ever all-female Celtics telecast in honor of Women’s History Month when Boston hosts the Brooklyn Nets at TD Garden on Tuesday, March 18.
NBC Sports Boston’s Celtics reporter Abby Chin will serve as play-by-play announcer and will be joined by renowned sportswriter and author Jackie MacMullan, as well as Connecticut Sun guard Diamond DeShields as analysts for the live-game coverage.
NBC Sports Boston’s Kayla Burton will host Celtics Pregame Live, Celtics Halftime Live and Celtics Postgame Live. Connecticut Sun President Jen Rizzotti and Connecticut Sun broadcast analyst, Celtics scout, and Maine Celtics assistant general manager Ashley Battle will serve as studio analysts surrounding the game.
Fans can watch the game on NBC Sports Boston and stream on the NBC Sports app. Coverage of the game begins at 7 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.
Get to know NBC Sports Boston’s all-female broadcast team below:
Play-by-play: Abby Chin
Abby Chin (@tvabby) is NBC Sports Boston’s Celtics sideline reporter, a role she has held for the better part of a decade since joining the broadcast in 2013. She also has served as the host of Celtics Pregame Live, Celtics Postgame Live and Celtics Post-Up and makes regular appearances on the Boston Celtics’ View From the Rafters podcast, as well as Chris Forsberg’s Celtics Talk Podcast.
Game analyst: Diamond DeShields
Diamond DeShields is one of the WNBA’s most dynamic wings, known for her explosive athleticism, scoring ability, and versatility. A former Naismith High School Player of the Year and McDonald’s All-American, she led Norcross High School to three state championships before beginning her collegiate career at North Carolina. As a freshman, she was named ACC Rookie of the Year and USBWA National Freshman of the Year before transferring to the University of Tennessee, where she became the Lady Vols’ leading scorer and earned First-Team All-SEC honors.
Selected third overall in the 2018 WNBA Draft by the Chicago Sky, DeShields made an immediate impact, earning All-Rookie Team honors and solidifying herself as one of the league’s most electrifying young stars. She became a WNBA All-Star in 2019 and played a key role in Chicago’s 2021 championship run, helping secure the franchise’s first-ever title. Her career has been marked by resilience—battling back from spinal tumor surgery in 2020 to return to the court and continue competing at the highest level. DeShields signed with the Connecticut Sun this offseason.
Beyond basketball, DeShields is recognized as one of the league’s most fashionable players, with a distinct style that merges high fashion and sportswear. She is also deeply committed to philanthropy, founding The 3-D Foundation, which provides resources and opportunities for underserved youth facing adversity, with a special focus on vision health and support for those with eye conditions like keratoconus.
With her blend of on-court dominance, cultural influence, and community impact, Diamond DeShields continues to shape the game in ways that extend far beyond basketball.
Game analyst: Jackie MacMullan
Jackie MacMullan recently retired as a television analyst and senior writer for ESPN. In April of 2022, she completed a narrative podcast series for The Ringer entitled The NBA Icons. She worked at the Boston Globe for 19 years as a columnist, reporter and associate editor. She was the first full-time female sports columnist in the history of the paper.
MacMullan also worked as a senior writer for Sports Illustrated from 1995-2000 covering the National Basketball Association.
She has won numerous national writing awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, including first place for investigative reporting, feature writing and, in 2018, for special projects. She has written several books: Bird Watching (1999), Geno: In Pursuit of Perfection (2006), When the Game was Ours (2009) and Shaq Uncut (2011). The latter two were both New York Times bestsellers. She also collaborated on the 2018 book Basketball: A Love Story, an oral history of the game associated with the celebrated ESPN film series of the same name.
MacMullan was inducted into the National Sportswriters Association (NSMA) Hall of Fame in June of 2022. In February of 2019, MacMullan was awarded the prestigious PEN American Lifetime Achievement Award in Literary Sports Writing, becoming the first female to be honored. In June of that same year, she was honored by the Association of Women in Sports Media (AWSM) as its Mary Garber Pioneer Award winner.
Pre/Postgame Live/Game reporter: Kayla Burton
Kayla Burton (@Kay_Breezy22) joined NBC Sports Boston in 2024 after working for ESPN as a college football sideline reporter. Kayla also spent two years at NFL Media, where she served a multi-platform role across NFL Network, NFL.com and the NFL app. Prior to her time at NFL Network, Burton served as a sports/news anchor, reporter and content producer for Western Mass News. A Newton, Mass., native, Burton was a four-year standout on the Lehigh women’s basketball team.
Studio analyst: Jennifer Rizzotti
Jennifer Rizzotti (@JenRizzotti) is the Connecticut Sun’s team president, overseeing basketball and business operations. After a storied career at UConn from 1992 to 1996, Rizzotti played eight seasons of professional basketball that included two WNBA titles with the Houston Comets. She spent more than 20 seasons as a coach at the University of Hartford (1999 to 2016) and George Washington (2016 to 2021) and served as the head coach of Team USA’s 3×3 women’s basketball team at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.
Studio analyst: Ashley Battle
Ashley Battle (@The_Battle_Zone) is a scout for the Boston Celtics and assistant general manager of the team’s G League affiliate, the Maine Celtics. She played five seasons for at UConn from 2000 to 2005, winning three national championships (2002, 2003 and 2004) and earning Big East Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2003. Battle enjoyed a six-year career in the WNBA with the Seattle Storm, New York Liberty and San Antonio Silver Stars (now the Las Vegas Aces). She also provides color commentary for the Connecticut Sun and New York Liberty broadcasts.
