Follow the Money Episode 2: Inside the Sports Media Biz with Sam McCleery and Steve Hellmuth

Welcome to the Sports Video Group’s new interview series, Follow the Money, designed to help SVG members and sponsors have a deeper understanding of the sports media rights, technology investment, and financial communities. Hosted by Sam McCleery, an Emmy-award-winning executive who worked for ESPN, Cablevision, Adidas, Prince Tennis, and Under Armour, each episode will feature experts in the sports innovation and investment community discussing a wide range of topics.

In a volatile entertainment business, what is the current state—and future outlook—of live sports?

On Episode 2 of Follow the Money, host Sam McCleery sits down with Steve Hellmuth, longtime sports-media executive and former NBA technology leader, for a wide-ranging conversation on how innovation has shaped the business of live sports.

WATCH: Follow the Money, Episode 2 – Steve Hellmuth

Across a nearly 45-year career, Hellmuth has been at the center of some of the most consequential technology shifts in the industry. During his tenure at the NBA, the league became the first to develop an advanced statistical system that powered a broad range of services and delivered live scores and data to the internet. The NBA also broke new ground with a centralized instant-replay system, a comprehensive digital archive, and early, meaningful investments in emerging technologies such as live streaming, 3D, VR, and volumetric capture.

Hellmuth’s experience spans production, live events, systems design, and technology strategy. In addition to leading the NBA’s statistical systems, facility construction efforts, and digital-media archives, he previously served as SVP/GM of Major League Baseball Productions, where he oversaw programming and production operations—giving him a rare, end-to-end perspective on how technology, media rights, and live production intersect.