Wiki Bio / Profile Background
Introduction :
Dei Lynam is an American sports broadcaster, writer, reporter and analyst. Most commonly recognized for her long-time tenure as the Philadelphia 76ers reporter at Comcast Sportsnet (CSN), she was let go following the 2017 season.
Personal Life, Parents and Family Details :
- Denise Kerry Lynam was born on February 20, 1966, in Delaware. She is the middle child of three kids born to parents, Jim (father) and Kay (mother), with an older sister named Kathleen and a younger brother named Jim Jr.
- Parents : Denise’s dad Jim Lynam is a former college and professional basketball coach. He has coached various college teams in the past – Fairfield University (1968 to 1970), American University (1973 to 1978), and St. Joseph’s University (1978 to 1981). In the NBA he was the coach for San Diego Clippers/Los Angeles Clippers (1983 to 1985), the Philadelphia 76ers (1987 to 1992), and the Washington Bullets (1995 to 1997).
- Now married for more than 25 years, Dei met her husband, Tim Riviere, while she was still a UCLA student. She had a part-time job in the athletic building where he was working for the sports marketing department. They have two sons together, Beau and Max.
Education : Qualifications, High School & College Info
- Born into a sports family, Dei knew the career path that she wanted to pursue early on in her life. Her dad coached basketball at the college and NBA level and was often asked to speak at camps and clinics. Dei would wake up early to travel with him to the events, just to listen to him speak.
- The summer before her sophomore year at Cardinal O’Hara High School in Philadelphia, Dei’s dad got the job as an assistant coach with the Portland Trailblazers. Given the option to stay behind with family and friends (as her sister chose to do), Dei packed up and moved to the West Coast to finish high school.
- The move to Portland marked the beginning of Dei’s career in sports. At just 15-years-old, she worked on the production crew for the Blazers, holding the microphone over the team during huddles.
- After earning her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UCLA more than 30 years ago, Dei returned to college to earn her master’s degree. She studied sports leadership and management at Concordia University Chicago, and graduated in 2019.
Career, Job, Salary and Net Worth :
- In 1991, Dei was hired by Don Sterling — who at the time was working as an executive producer at NBA Entertainment. Under him, she worked on the NBA campaign “I Love This Game” that still exists to this day and received an Emmy Award for her work.
- Leaving her husband and her job with NBA Entertainment behind in NYC, Dei moved to Madison, Wisconsin, for her first on-air experience as a weekend sports anchor.
- When CSN was created in 1997, Dei was one of their first employees, working as the Philadelphia 76ers reporter and analyst. After 19 years and 11 months with the company, she left in July 2017.
- Since parting ways with CSN, Dei has kept busy. Currently, she works as a color analyst for the Delaware Blue Coats (the 76ers G League affiliate); as an analyst for the Princeton women’s basketball team on The Ivy League Network; as a radio host on WWDB 860 AM; and as a writer, TV and radio host for her own podcast, DeiTales.
Fun Facts, Height and Trivia :
- In 1998, Dei and her dad made history as the first dad/daughter team to announce an NBA telecast.
- Devoted to her work, at one time, Dei lived apart from her husband for 6 ½ years.
