Windhorst began covering James during his high school playing career,[2] and began covering the Cavaliers in 2003, the year that James was drafted.[1] While James was the youngest player in the NBA, Windhorst was the youngest traveling NBA beat writer.[3] In 2007, he co-wrote The Franchise: LeBron James and the Remaking of the Cleveland Cavaliers with sports columnist Terry Pluto. His writing at The Plain Dealer was honored by the United States Basketball Writers Association for Best Game Story in 2009,[4] and by the Associated Press.
In 2010, Windhorst left The Plain Dealer for ESPN to cover James' new team, the Miami Heat.[5] Prior to leaving The Plain Dealer, he contributed columns to ESPN.com[1] and made appearances on ESPN First Take. In an interview, Windhorst stated that "obviously LeBron's a huge factor" in his decision to join ESPN,[6] but that the Cavaliers "need to move on" without James.[6]
On October 10, 2014, it was announced that Windhorst would join ESPN Cleveland on WKNR AM 850 in Cleveland to be their Cavaliers beat reporter and analyst, as well as host his own weekly program on sister station WWGK AM 1540. The move followed James' re-signing with the Cavaliers in 2014.[7]
In addition to writing for ESPN, Windhorst hosts the popular Hoop Collective podcast.[8]
Personal life
Windhorst lives in Omaha, Nebraska, with his wife Maureen Fulton, whom he married in 2012.[9][10]
Publications
Pluto, Terry and Windhorst, Brian (2007). The Franchise: LeBron James and the Remaking of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland, OH: Gray & Company, Publishers. ISBN978-1-59851-028-7
Pluto, Terry and Windhorst, Brian (2009). LeBron James: The Making of an MVP. Cleveland, OH: Gray & Company, Publishers. ISBN978-1-59851-059-1
McMenamin, David and Windhorst, Brian (2017). Return of the King: LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Greatest Comeback in NBA History. New York City, NY: Grand Central Publishing. ISBN978-1478971689
Windhorst, Brian (2019). LeBron, Inc.: The Making of a Billion-Dollar Athlete. New York City, NY: Grand Central Publishing ISBN978-1538730874
^Smeltz, Nate (October 4, 2010). "ESPN.com to Launch "The Heat Index" Oct. 11". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2010. Retrieved November 5, 2010. Windhorst will be based in Miami as one of two regular beat writers assigned to the team.