Malika Andrews Couldn’t Have Been More Chill As Earthquake Shook ESPN Set

If we go by Ernest Hemingway’s definition of courage as grace under pressure, ESPN’s Malika Andrews had the heart of a lioness during the 4.7 magnitude earthquake that hit the Los Angeles area on Monday.

While conducting a live interview with basketball legend Rebecca Lobo — any thoughts on Caitlin Clark’s Team USA Olympic snub, I wonder? — the Earth literally shook. Andrews was pretty much unfazed by the whole situation, confirming in real time that it was indeed a quake that was causing all kinds of clattering and crashing sounds on the ESPN set.

Thankfully it seems like everyone involved turned out to be OK. We even got a video from ESPN’s Los Angeles affiliate that gave their camera a little bit of turbulence.

Year-round phenomenal weather in California is pretty nice, but there is the occasional flare-up of unruly tectonic plates that can cause catastrophic damage. Even relatively “minor” earthquakes can be really scary, and in the moment they’re happening, you can’t really tell the severity or lack thereof unless you’ve experienced one before.

Big ups to Tim Legler for admitting he wasn’t as well-equipped to handle the quake when he posted his supportive message on X/Twitter.

All those factors considered, Andrews was such a true pro about it all. Hats off to her.

As for some of the other cool stuff Andrews has accomplished during her time at the four-letter network, she became the first woman ever to host the NBA Draft back in 2022. For all the criticism of ESPN’s NBA Finals coverage, I don’t think Andrews was to blame for any of that. She’s clearly got it together and is one of the big star talents at ESPN. That was no more evident than how she handled the whole impromptu earthquake.