When Bill Simmons' new TV show "Any Given Wednesday" debuted on HBO in June, it was the culmination of somewhat of a bidding war for the services of the former ESPN giant.
Four months later, the show is performing so poorly that some already are speculating where Simmons could wind up next — on the rebound, if HBO decides to dump him.
The most recent episode Wednesday drew just 82,000 live viewers — the poorest showing of any of the 16 episodes since its June 22 launch.
As noted by the Big Lead, the show's 9 p.m. (Central) time slot put it in direct competition with the World Series and NBA games this past week, meaning much of Simmons' potential core audience likely was watching something else. Big picture, there's still time for the show to hit its stride.
If not? "This failure will stick to [Simmons]," the Big Lead says.
Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.
