For more than a decade, Turner Sports Executive VP/COO Lenny Daniels has brought his passion for technology and television to the organization, spearheading initiatives for what is now one of the most robust digital sports properties in the industry.
Daniels was the lead executive behind the move of the NBA’s digital assets to Turner in 2008, and he helped turn Turner Sports’ hub in Atlanta into a world-class technical facility virtually from scratch. As Turner’s senior VP of sports production and new media, a position he held for four years, Daniels oversaw the build-out of NASCAR.com, PGA.com and PGATour.com, as well as branded channels on NBA.com and MLB.com.
“We have great people who are tireless and just really passionate about their job,” Daniels says. “You can teach people the mechanics of the job, but that you can’t teach.”
Daniels cut his teeth working for a number of local stations in Miami before moving into sports as a director for ESPN’s SportsCenter, working the famous 11 p.m. “tag team” show hosted by Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
“It was just a blast,” he says of his days in Bristol. “Being able to showcase what I thought I was good at to a huge audience and a growing network was exciting.”
For a guy who says, “I could probably spend 24 hours a day at work,” Daniels certainly has his hands full. The 44-year-old father of two likes to take his kids tubing on the family boat and coaches T-ball. And that’s just what takes up his time on the ground. Daniels, a licensed pilot, flies, among other craft, a Cessna 172 all over the Southeast. “I love going somewhere, picking a place on the map with me and my wife and saying, ‘Let’s go.’”
The intensity and enthusiasm that Daniels has for his airborne extracurricular activities matches the challenges and excitement of his day job. “I love being passionate about something, and I love being on edge,” he says. “Something can change on a moment’s notice, and you need to react.”
