Mike Vrabel & Dianna Russini Mocked In ‘Inside The NBA’ Graphic After Celtics Series Loss

ESPN’s Inside the NBA featured New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and former The Athletic reporter Dianna Russini in a graphic after the Boston Celtics were eliminated by the Philadelphia 76ers.

The graphic was captioned “Gone fishing” and featured Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. However, it also showed Vrabel and Russini recreating the “I’m the king of the world” scene from Titanic.

Inside the NBA joined the ESPN lineup after airing on TNT since 1989. They’ve made graphics like these for many years. 

The Inside the NBA crew didn’t acknowledge that Vrabel and Russini were in the graphic on the show.

On April 7, Page Six published seven photos of Vrabel and Russini at the Ambiente Sedona hotel in Arizona. The leaked photos showed them hugging and holding hands. Vrabel was interviewed by the New York Post later that day and was asked about the photos. 

“These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable,” Vrabel said. “This doesn’t deserve any further response.”

Russini initially defended her actions, saying she was with a group of six people and that it’s common for sports journalists and team members to spend time together during the offseason.

Later that week, The New York Times, owner of The Athletic, said it launched an investigation into the incident. Russini resigned from The Athletic a few days later.

In late April, The New York Post released new photos of Vrabel and Russini. Although it’s not confirmed when the photos were taken, The New York Post estimated they were taken six years ago.

If The New York Post is correct about the timeline, this photo was taken approximately six months before Russini became engaged.