2015-2016 Announcer Thread

[MChambers]

Post your thoughts on all announcer matters here.

To get things started, I see that Shane is no longer with ESPN. Sounds like he wanted more time at home.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2015/11/06/shane-battier-seemed-ready-made-to-do-sports-tv-but-he-lasted-just-one-year-at-espn/

[weezie]

I stopped getting the wapo many years ago, partly because of it's pathetic excuse for a sports department. Adam Bonehead must have either forgotten or decided to overlook the fact that Shane and his family suffered a tremendous blow with the loss of his brother, a man who also had children of his own, who might actually need their uncle's emotional support.
Shane Battier needs to do whatever the hell he wants to do and should so without the whiny blatherings of this pinhead.

But, otherwise, it's great to see this thread reappear with the falling leaves...hoops season is upon us! :)

[luburch]

Post your thoughts on all announcer matters here.

To get things started, I see that Shane is no longer with ESPN. Sounds like he wanted more time at home.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2015/11/06/shane-battier-seemed-ready-made-to-do-sports-tv-but-he-lasted-just-one-year-at-espn/

I really wanted to like Shane as an announcer, but he was hard to listen to most times. :(

[CDu]

I had the misfortune of getting to listen to TNT's coverage of the Bulls/Thunder game. They had Reggie Miller (who is awful) and Charles Barkley (who is hilarious in studio) doing combined color commentary on the game. It was abysmal.

Barkley is really good in studio - very funny, and actually pretty good at analysis. But in games, he just picks his talking points and uses every possession to talk about those few talking points. Last night, it was "Westbrook and Durant need to get their teammates involved more". This despite the fact that Westbrook is leading the NBA in assists right now, and he and Durant are by far the two best scorers on the team. He would go on and on arguing about this with Miller while the game is going on, rather than talking about the game.

And basically everything he said about either team was a simple criticism of "that's a bad shot", or "that was a bad decision." It was just awful to listen to, especially since the game itself was a well-played, close, exciting game. The broadcasters managed to make a really fun and exciting matchup less fun - basically they did the opposite of what you want your broadcast crew to do. They were making folks want to turn off the TV.

Thankfully, the game itself was good enough and close enough to get through it. And it helped that I was invested as a Bulls fan. But I can't see how a casual fan would want to listen to that. And that's the fanbase you want to cater to with a national broadcast.

[Edouble]

I really wanted to like Shane as an announcer, but he was hard to listen to most times. :(

He was really hard to listen to, but not any worse than a lot of announcers their first year (eg Jay Williams).

I think it was surprising, given what we know of Shane, that the transition to being an awesome broadcaster wasn't incredibly smooth.

I am excited to see what his next move will be. He's one of the great, great Blue Devils and I wish him the best of luck!

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

He was really hard to listen to, but not any worse than a lot of announcers their first year (eg Jay Williams).

I think it was surprising, given what we know of Shane, that the transition to being an awesome broadcaster wasn't incredibly smooth.

I am excited to see what his next move will be. He's one of the great, great Blue Devils and I wish him the best of luck!

I didn't catch a lot of him, but early on it felt like he was talking over the heads of the audience with his word choice and language, and later on it felt like someone got his ear and was telling him to "dumb things down a bit" which was even more awkward.

Regardless, Shane has a bright future. I'm confident that if he decided to pursue broadcasting he could make it work.

[SCMatt33]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzKuaO5EvOY

From now on, I'm imagining that Jay spends all of his free time snapchatting with Mark Alarie (1:30 mark, though it's worth watching all of it). You can tell that the people who wrote the script went a little heavy on the promo type stats, but Kennedy does a good job.

[sagegrouse]

I didn't catch a lot of him, but early on it felt like he was talking over the heads of the audience with his word choice and language, and later on it felt like someone got his ear and was telling him to "dumb things down a bit" which was even more awkward.

Regardless, Shane has a bright future. I'm confident that if he decided to pursue broadcasting he could make it work.

Shane is a very serious guy and sports broadcasting is beneath him. After all, there can only be one Jay Bilas.

[Edouble]

I didn't catch a lot of him, but early on it felt like he was talking over the heads of the audience with his word choice and language, and later on it felt like someone got his ear and was telling him to "dumb things down a bit" which was even more awkward.

Regardless, Shane has a bright future. I'm confident that if he decided to pursue broadcasting he could make it work.

He was always so good at answering questions, but he was pretty terrible at asking them, as evidenced by his rough start on ESPN at the 2013 NBA Draft.

As much as Shane seems like a pretty humble guy, the fact of the matter is it just seems like he is better at talking about himself than about others. Some people are like that.

[captmojo]

I really wanted to like Shane as an announcer, but he was hard to listen to most times. :(

I think that it was NOT WHAT he was saying. Rather, HOW his voice was not properly projected through the microphone, during games.
I struggled with trying to understand what words were coming out of his mouth. He's a little hard to hear.

[gumbomoop]

Imported from UK-Duke thread --


Am I the only one who found Bilas to be more than painful to listen to? I reached the point of muting the TV. He just never shuts up.

No, you are not alone in this. I could use about 1/3 fewer game-flow observations from Bilas. [I harbor the nagging suspicion that this board might be able to handle comfortably the disappointment of 1/3 fewer posts from me, too, so...]

I guess Bilas has risen to the top of ESPN's college bball experts. As such they presumably encourage him to spout prolifically; and he doesn't seem to need much encouragement. IMO, he's dangerously deep into role-playing the role of playing Jay Bilas on the tele, and the interwebs, too. He's plenty insightful, but his overconfidence is only partially leavened by the pattern of charming self-criticism. [Again, I know about this stuff. See above.]

More Dan Bonner. His goofy smile looks genuine to me. How else explain it?

[AtlDuke72]

[QUOTE=gumbomoop;839479]Imported from UK-Duke thread --



No, you are not alone in this. I could use about 1/3 fewer game-flow observations from Bilas. [I harbor the nagging suspicion that this board might be able to handle comfortably the disappointment of 1/3 fewer posts from me, too, so...]


Is there any place that counts the number of words saaid by an announcer during a game? My guess is that Doris Burke says about twice what Bilas says - she NEVER shuts up.

[MChambers]

What happens if you use the TuneIn app to listen to Bob Harris while watching ESPN? I assume it isn't synced to the TV broadcast. Is it ahead or behind?

[bedeviled]

While watching the Duke game and playing in DBR Chat, I was using one eye and one earbud to pay attention to USA's CONCACAF soccer match on the beIN television network (which is a very legit source for soccer).
The in-studio breaks and halftime report were handled by two young females and a lot of empty space much like in this pic:
5718
I found it interesting that an international soccer match was anchored solely by two women, only one of whom (Ali Krieger) is a former player. The other woman (Terri Leigh) is a correspondent/reporter/anchor who came to beIN from the FOX network.
Unfortunately, it didn't work so well, with Krieger responsible for filling too much time between Leigh's questions. Lots of space in that show :D

[walras]

"Is it ahead or behind?"
Harris is ahead by several seconds.

[weezie]

... [I harbor the nagging suspicion that this board might be able to handle comfortably the disappointment of 1/3 fewer posts from me, too, so...]

...More Dan Bonner. His goofy smile looks genuine to me. How else explain it?

I dunno, maybe a man crush?! :cool: But, as to your posts, never think that!

[BigWayne]

While watching the Duke game and playing in DBR Chat, I was using one eye and one earbud to pay attention to USA's CONCACAF soccer match on the beIN television network (which is a very legit source for soccer).
The in-studio breaks and halftime report were handled by two young females and a lot of empty space much like in this pic:
5718
I found it interesting that an international soccer match was anchored solely by two women, only one of whom (Ali Krieger) is a former player. The other woman (Terri Leigh) is a correspondent/reporter/anchor who came to beIN from the FOX network.
Unfortunately, it didn't work so well, with Krieger responsible for filling too much time between Leigh's questions. Lots of space in that show :D

I would venture that beIN has assessed that the audience for CONCACAF soccer in the US shares similarities with the audience for Univision weather reports.

[BigWayne]

Is there any place that counts the number of words saaid by an announcer during a game? My guess is that Doris Burke says about twice what Bilas says - she NEVER shuts up.

What's the over/under on Duke games covered by Doris in some capacity? I would bet it will be 20+. She's like the bad penny of announcers.

[sagegrouse]

What's the over/under on Duke games covered by Doris in some capacity? I would bet it will be 20+. She's like the bad penny of announcers.

She gets points from me for being the first person on national TV to call Grayson Allen "Alan Grayson."

BTW do you notice what gasbags the football color men are for both college and pro football. I mean, we saw the play, just shut up and let us look at the field while the teams are forming up for the next play. The classic announcing style, of course, was Ray Scott, who reportedly called a Green Bay play back in the day in three words: "Starr... Dowler... touchdown."

[CameronBornAndBred]

No, you are not alone in this. I could use about 1/3 fewer game-flow observations from Bilas.
My name in our chat last night was ShutUpJay.

[bedeviled]

Mere minutes into the UNC game, UNC fans were already railing against some flavorful announcing by Dan Dakich (https://twitter.com/dandakich?lang=en).
Maybe it's because of dialogue like this:
Bob: Joel James pulls the string
Dan: He just can't shoot.
Bob: [chuckle]
Dan: There's just no other way to say it

Some other examples:
"North Carolina's just a mess there defensively"
"North Carolina players...toughness has ALWAYS been a question"
Meeks = lazy

[budwom]

Then he started crapping on Duke's football team.

[Indoor66]

Then he started crapping on Duke's football team.

Frankly, we haven't earned anyone's praise lately. :mad::(:cool:

[captmojo]

Doris does know and understand the game but the non-stop voicing has got to cease.

In early season, all announcers are guilty of this violation. It goes so far that you find yourself asking questions like, "Who...what...what the hell was that call? Shut up with the additional stuff that you can share as a 'bumper story', and tell us about the call that was just made, please. The game's still going on!"

Anyway, at least most of the stories are related to the teams or the game we're looking at. Bill Walton might just tell us an unconnected Grateful Dead story, or something about bike riding in Latvia.

[Dev11]

Anyway, at least most of the stories are related to the teams or the game we're looking at. Bill Walton might just tell us an unconnected Grateful Dead story, or something about bike riding in Latvia.

If you encounter a Bill Walton game, just tell yourself that you're listening to a fun flashback podcast while watching basketball. If you wanted commentary, switch to something else.

[NSDukeFan]

Imported from UK-Duke thread --



No, you are not alone in this. I could use about 1/3 fewer game-flow observations from Bilas. [I harbor the nagging suspicion that this board might be able to handle comfortably the disappointment of 1/3 fewer posts from me, too, so...]

I guess Bilas has risen to the top of ESPN's college bball experts. As such they presumably encourage him to spout prolifically; and he doesn't seem to need much encouragement. IMO, he's dangerously deep into role-playing the role of playing Jay Bilas on the tele, and the interwebs, too. He's plenty insightful, but his overconfidence is only partially leavened by the pattern of charming self-criticism. [Again, I know about this stuff. See above.]

More Dan Bonner. His goofy smile looks genuine to me. How else explain it?

I enjoy the self-deprecating humour and feel he knows the game well. I don't agree with some of his views but have generally enjoyed listening to him.

[Olympic Fan]

Just before the State-LSU game, I was watching the studio show and a discussion between Duke's Jason Williams and the terrible Seth Greenberg (as bad a commentator as he was a coach).

They were talking about the growth of social media and the growing proliferation of embarrassing tweets by athletes after tough losses.

Williams made the comment that were he a coach, he wouldn't ban social media, but he would hold his players accountable for anything they posted.

Which I thought was a fair and reasonable position.

Greenberg went off, screaming "What about free speech?" "If you punish kids for posting the wrong thing, then you are trampling on free speech."

Sigh ...

Jason tried to explain that holding someone accountable for their speech is not the same thing as prohibiting speech ... if fact, its the essense of free speech. You are free to say anything, but you must face the consequences of your speech. The First Amendment right to free speech only protects you from the government preventing you from saying anything you want ... not from having to deal with the consequences of your speech.

I don't know why I get so upset listening to that idiot. You'd think I'd learn by now. But unlike Bill Walton (also an idiot commentator, but endlessly amusing), Greenberg's stupidity gets under my skin.

PS I know people who know Walton and insist that he's a very intelligent man. That may be so, but he's a lunatic on the air -- like a once brilliant student who has burned out his brain with too much dope. In fact, listening to Walton rhapsodize on air about Maui Wowie yesterday, I think that may explain his surrealistic commentary.

[oldnavy]

Imported from UK-Duke thread --



No, you are not alone in this. I could use about 1/3 fewer game-flow observations from Bilas. [I harbor the nagging suspicion that this board might be able to handle comfortably the disappointment of 1/3 fewer posts from me, too, so...]

I guess Bilas has risen to the top of ESPN's college bball experts. As such they presumably encourage him to spout prolifically; and he doesn't seem to need much encouragement. IMO, he's dangerously deep into role-playing the role of playing Jay Bilas on the tele, and the interwebs, too. He's plenty insightful, but his overconfidence is only partially leavened by the pattern of charming self-criticism. [Again, I know about this stuff. See above.]

More Dan Bonner. His goofy smile looks genuine to me. How else explain it?


That he is a sociopath? That he is really is the Joker but without the creepy make up???

I don't particularly like any announcers but Bonner is one that I dislike much less than some of the others..... if that makes any sense.

[oldnavy]

Just before the State-LSU game, I was watching the studio show and a discussion between Duke's Jason Williams and the terrible Seth Greenberg (as bad a commentator as he was a coach).

They were talking about the growth of social media and the growing proliferation of embarrassing tweets by athletes after tough losses.

Williams made the comment that were he a coach, he wouldn't ban social media, but he would hold his players accountable for anything they posted.

Which I thought was a fair and reasonable position.

Greenberg went off, screaming "What about free speech?" "If you punish kids for posting the wrong thing, then you are trampling on free speech."

Sigh ...

Jason tried to explain that holding someone accountable for their speech is not the same thing as prohibiting speech ... if fact, its the essense of free speech. You are free to say anything, but you must face the consequences of your speech. The First Amendment right to free speech only protects you from the government preventing you from saying anything you want ... not from having to deal with the consequences of your speech.

I don't know why I get so upset listening to that idiot. You'd think I'd learn by now. But unlike Bill Walton (also an idiot commentator, but endlessly amusing), Greenberg's stupidity gets under my skin.

PS I know people who know Walton and insist that he's a very intelligent man. That may be so, but he's a lunatic on the air -- like a once brilliant student who has burned out his brain with too much dope. In fact, listening to Walton rhapsodize on air about Maui Wowie yesterday, I think that may explain his surrealistic commentary.

Watching Walton is like watching that Bob Dylan, IBM commercial..... you can tell that the grey cells have seen their better days!

[budwom]

channel surfing last night, I briefly found myself on an ESPN channel wherein some announcer was discussing the upcoming game with "the top ranked Tarheels."
Always a good idea to suck up to your boss.

[Billy Dat]

I was impressed with Kara Lawson doing color from the Legends Classic in Brooklyn the past few days.

[captmojo]

Lawson did a fantastic job, explaining some strategy along with a description of the play before her.
I'd like to see more of her doing men's games. At least, the ones not involving Tennessee.
As for her viewpoint on the women's game, it seems a little biased to me.

[OldPhiKap]

Listening to Bill Walton in the Indiana-UNLV game, enjoying it. No brilliant insight, but fun to listen to.

[Dr. Rosenrosen]

channel surfing last night, I briefly found myself on an ESPN channel wherein some announcer was discussing the upcoming game with "the top ranked Tarheels."
Always a good idea to suck up to your boss.
The funny thing is how many holes call it DSPN. They must continuously and conveniently forget who runs the show.

[MChambers]

Am greatly enjoying listening to Cory Alexander. Very calm and reasonable announcer.

[weezie]

He's OK by me, very respectful of K and not a lazy announcer.

[norduck]

He's OK by me, very respectful of K and not a lazy announcer.

Kinda got a snide remark in at the end of 1st half by remarking,Yale trails their safety at the half. Not for sure which announcer made the comment though.

[Des Esseintes]

Kinda got a snide remark in at the end of 1st half by remarking,Yale trails their safety at the half. Not for sure which announcer made the comment though.

I heard that too. It was the studio host opposite Dino Gaudio. Can't remember his name, though.

[sagegrouse]

Kinda got a snide remark in at the end of 1st half by remarking,Yale trails their safety at the half. Not for sure which announcer made the comment though.

Going into the second half, the studio host said, "Yale trails its 'safety school' by two points."

[OldPhiKap]

Going into the second half, the studio host said, "Yale trails its 'safety school' by two points."

Meh. Mildly funny. Not gonna hate for that.

I mean, to be fair, it probably took the guy all week to come up with it.

[budwom]

I am still a huge advocate of the mute button. I always keep the sound off during the initial viewing of the game. If the game
merits re-watching (as many do) then I "treat" myself to sound (if I can stand it).

[captmojo]

Meh. Mildly funny. Not gonna hate for that.

I mean, to be fair, it probably took the guy all week to come up with it.

Not sure how long it took him to come up with it, but it's probably pretty evident that he had spent some time thinking about his use of it.

[sagegrouse]

Not sure how long it took him to come up with it, but it's probably pretty evident that he had spent some time thinking about his use of it.

Nah. ESPN has an intern from Yale.

[Jim3k]

Going into the second half, the studio host said, "Yale trails its 'safety school' by two points."

Not much different from our old joke about Harvard or Yale (whichever was appropriate to the conversation) being the "Duke of the North." Usually in connection with the even older saw about Duke being the "Harvard of the South."

Fifty-five years out, it all seems a tad sophomoric. Mildly cute. All such jibes seem puerile and have outlived their shelf-life--except, GO TO HELL CAROLINA, GO TO HELL! :D

[Henderson]

Intern: I'll ___ then ___ if you read this on air.

Network Geek: Um, Ok... I like those big glasses. And your oversized plaid shirt.

[later]

Network Geek: So, huh huh, what do you say?

Intern: Do you even understand 21st century irony?

[flyingdutchdevil]

Can't believe I'm admitting this, but I thought the color guy with Seth Greenberg was his cousin. After all, I heard 'My cousin Seth Greenberg here for Duke-Utah State'. Mike Couzens...I'm an idiot

[Billy Dat]

Can't believe I'm admitting this, but I thought the color guy with Seth Greenberg was his cousin. After all, I heard 'My cousin Seth Greenberg here for Duke-Utah State'. Mike Couzens...I'm an idiot

Great Seth quote yesterday, "I first came here as an assistant with Virginia" Couzens, "Was it tough?" Greenberg, "Well, being down 30 before you even step to the line, yeah...that was tough"

Zing!

[MChambers]

I liked listening to LaPhonso Ellis last night. I thought he made some good points about Duke's defensive weaknesses and he wasn't over the top on anything.

Of course, I liked him saying he was 0-5 against Duke in his time at ND.

[elvis14]

I liked listening to LaPhonso Ellis last night. I thought he made some good points about Duke's defensive weaknesses and he wasn't over the top on anything.

Of course, I liked him saying he was 0-5 against Duke in his time at ND.

I had the same thoughts about Ellis last night. Thought he did a pretty good job. He did get a bit repetitive (especially about dribble penetration against Duke) but I guess it's better to repeat a valid point then spout useless crap trying to fill air time during a blow out.

[Tripping William]

Kyle Macy lookin' ollllllllld!

[captmojo]

Corey Alexander made a good observation, last night.
Duke could win the game if they were to go scoreless in the second half. Their defense was that good.

70-66 ... prophetic

[MChambers]

Corey Alexander made a good observation, last night.
Duke could win the game if they were to go scoreless in the second half. Their defense was that good.

70-66 ... prophetic

Duke's defense hasn't been that good since beating UNC on March 6, 2010, 82-50, after leading 53-26 at halftime. Of cpurse, that was 2010 UNC, which was not as good as 2015 Elon.

[Nugget]

Kyle Macy lookin' ollllllllld!

That was really staggering, considering how baby-faced he was as a player.

[jv001]

Corey Alexander made a good observation, last night.
Duke could win the game if they were to go scoreless in the second half. Their defense was that good.

70-66 ... prophetic

I think our offense was that good. In the first half we missed defensive assignments several times that led to far too many layups. However the defense picked up as the game went on. GoDuke!

[MChambers]

Just watched the Wake game with the sound on. As some of you suggested, Elmore was a pleasant surprise. Someone must have given him happy pills. He really sounded like a different person. Complimenting Coach K, Ingram, Kennard, etc.

I actually thought Couzens was just fine, too.

Some of you forgot and put your Elmore comments in the post-game thread. Please shape up.

[elvis14]

Just watched the Wake game with the sound on. As some of you suggested, Elmore was a pleasant surprise. Someone must have given him happy pills. He really sounded like a different person. Complimenting Coach K, Ingram, Kennard, etc.

I actually thought Couzens was just fine, too.

Some of you forgot and put your Elmore comments in the post-game thread. Please shape up.

I've watched the game a couple of times with the sound on. Elmore took fewer shots at Duke than he normally does. Couzens was openly rooting for WF. He was dead pan stoic when Duke scored and screaming when WF scored. Drove me nuts, and I don't mind DickieV! Just talked with my best friend about the game a short while ago, he said the same thing about Couzens.

Listening to those two idiots you'd have thought Devin Thomas was Christian L.

[killerleft]

I've watched the game a couple of times with the sound on. Elmore took fewer shots at Duke than he normally does. Couzens was openly rooting for WF. He was dead pan stoic when Duke scored and screaming when WF scored. Drove me nuts, and I don't mind DickieV! Just talked with my best friend about the game a short while ago, he said the same thing about Couzens.

Listening to those two idiots you'd have thought Devin Thomas was Christian L.

Scoring 19 points in the first half of a ballgame against the best college program in the country is something even a couple of idiots couldn't ignore, apparently.

[elvis14]

Scoring 19 points in the first half of a ballgame against the best college program in the country is something even a couple of idiots couldn't ignore, apparently.

I wouldn't expect them to ignore it. It bothered me that they celebrated it. Turns out that Grayson Allen scored the same number of points as Thomas...who knew?

In yesterday's Duke game vs. VT I didn't notice the announcers (and I've watched the game twice already). Couldn't tell you who whey were. That's how it's supposed to be.

[gumbomoop]

Elmore may have achieved Hall of Fame-level-Duke-makes-him-weird during tonight's UVa-Miami game. When his broadcast partner noted that Duke leads the ACC in scoring, Len, um, corrected him by noting that actually the Heels have scored more points this season.

Having played one more game than Duke.

So, Len helpfully noted that by PPG, i.e., average, yes, Duke is the highest scoring team in the conference.

"I just don't want to get angry calls from Chapel Hill," said Len.

I personally don't give a flying fig whether Duke or Carolina or any other team leads the league in scoring. But it does strike me that anything that might even vaguely be thought praise for our team just unsettles him, in heretofore unexpected ways.

[Doria]

Elmore may have achieved Hall of Fame-level-Duke-makes-him-weird during tonight's UVa-Miami game. When his broadcast partner noted that Duke leads the ACC in scoring, Len, um, corrected him by noting that actually the Heels have scored more points this season.

Having played one more game than Duke.

So, Len helpfully noted that by PPG, i.e., average, yes, Duke is the highest scoring team in the conference.

"I just don't want to get angry calls from Chapel Hill," said Len.

I personally don't give a flying fig whether Duke or Carolina or any other team leads the league in scoring. But it does strike me that anything that might even vaguely be thought praise for our team just unsettles him, in heretofore unexpected ways.

Ha ha, I noticed that, too. It struck me as borderline paranoid, but I suppose you're right that he was just trying to cover his unexpected confusion over the concept of percentages.

[oldnavy]

Ha ha, I noticed that, too. It struck me as borderline paranoid, but I suppose you're right that he was just trying to cover his unexpected confusion over the concept of percentages.

That, and he wanted to knock Duke down a rung... the guy is totally transparent in his anti-Duke rhetoric.

[budwom]

Ha ha, I noticed that, too. It struck me as borderline paranoid, but I suppose you're right that he was just trying to cover his unexpected confusion over the concept of percentages.

Good old Seabiscuit. The mute button was invented for him.

[brevity]

Dick Vitale is branching out.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tTlwmY3vA

You just know he's going to talk about John Wayne all the time, even if IFC isn't showing a western.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Dick Vitale is branching out.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tTlwmY3vA

You just know he's going to talk about John Wayne all the time, even if IFC isn't showing a western.

I can't spork that, but well played.

[Henderson]

May I say a few words about Bob Harris, radio announcer for the Duke MBB games?

1. He's a legend.
2. He's bad at radio play-by-play.

For many games, I stream the radio broadcast, and sometimes that's without any video. That's when you rely on the play-by-play guy to paint the picture. Bob Harris doesn't do that well. It's maddening, because with especially impactful plays, he gets kind of tongue-tied and doesn't say what's going on or who has done what. He catches up 15 seconds later, but by that time I'm already fantasizing about crushing my radio at the lack of timely "play-by-play."

I have a lot of respect for Bob Harris, his longevity, and his being the voice I associate with Duke BB on the radio. But there are lots of guys coming up who could do much better.

[budwom]

"And now they're saying it's an interception! I could've sworn they signalled a Duke touchdown!!!!"

[Indoor66]

Did anyone else find Bilas to be overbearing yesterday? He was always talking. He commented on everything - to the point of irritation to me.

Just my 2¢.

[mapei]

At times I think a touch of humility would serve Jay well.

[cspan37421]

"And now they're saying it's an interception! I could've sworn they signalled a Duke touchdown!!!!"

"And there's a long drive! Way back! It's going, going ... and ...
it's caught by the shortstop! Oh boy, I thought that was outta here."

- Will Farrell as Harry Caray. Can't find source. Might have been Fresh Air interview on WHYY.

[Pghdukie]

Your comments are "Just a little bit outside".

[Karl Beem]

Did anyone else find Bilas to be overbearing yesterday? He was always talking. He commented on everything - to the point of irritation to me.

Just my 2¢.

That's normal. I took off my headphones when Mr. Brackets appeared.

[MChambers]

In the Md-MSU Big Ten semifinal, Turgeon picked up a T, but the officials foolishly blew the whistle in the middle of a MSU fast break. Grant Hill said it might be the best transition defense Maryland has played today.

[duke4ever19]

This probably doesn't go here, but oh well.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/craig-sager-tells-hbo-that-his-leukemia-is-no-longer-in-remission-205120813.html

Sad to hear. Keep fighting, Mr. Sager.

[brevity]

Awful Announcing (http://awfulannouncing.com/) can be a helpful site this time of year, providing info about the other elimination tournament, the one taking place behind the scenes. After the first weekend of play, fan favorites like Len "Sunshine" Elmore, Chris "Extra Step" Webber, and Doug "RFID" Gottlieb are going home.

This article (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/your-2016-sweet-16-announcing-schedule.html) sets forth the announcing teams for the Sweet 16:


South: Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson
East: Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Dana Jacobson
Midwest: Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Reggie Miller, Lewis Johnson
West: Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce

Also, you can give grades (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/grade-the-2016-ncaa-tournament-announcers.html) to the announcing teams so far.

Side note: Looks like Allie LaForce wanted to get as far away as possible from that creepy Notre Dame player (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/notre-dame-player-creepily-stares-down-allie-laforce-after-win.html). Good for her.

[Faustus]

I greatly enjoyed listening to Verne Lindquist and Jimmy Spanarkel over the weekend - Spanarkel in the past melded very well with Ian Eagle but now worked perfectly with Verne. Is this their first year working together? It seems as if they'd been buddies for years, just so comfortable as a team. Very professional as well, with profound insight, but also that extra layer of humor and general sense of fun that's so rare with most of those guys. It made for very pleasurable watching, even with the blow-out of Iowa that was over by half-time. Glad that CBS has kept them on for another weekend. The only disturbing thing - Jimmy's hair is almost fully grey now, and was at Duke a few years after me. :(

[burnspbesq]

Even when forced to carry Gottlieb, Spiro Dedas is tremendous.

[brevity]

Also, you can give grades (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/grade-the-2016-ncaa-tournament-announcers.html) to the announcing teams so far.

Reader voting is in, and Awful Announcing power ranks (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/your-2016-ncaa-tournament-announcing-power-rankings.html) the NCAA Tournament announcing teams:

1) Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce
2) Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson
3) Ian Eagle, Chris Webber, Len Elmore, Evan Washburn
4) Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Lewis Johnson
5) Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Dana Jacobson
6) Carter Blackburn, Mike Gminski, Jaime Maggio
7) Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl
8) Spero Dedes, Doug Gottlieb, Ros Gold-Onwude

Despite the #6 ranking, the article praises Gminski.


His analysis of how Northern Iowa would be negatively affected trying to inbound the basketball down the stretch due to injury was an insight that few announcers could deliver in such a pivotal moment.

[elvis14]

Reader voting is in, and Awful Announcing power ranks (http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/your-2016-ncaa-tournament-announcing-power-rankings.html) the NCAA Tournament announcing teams:

1) Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce
2) Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson
3) Ian Eagle, Chris Webber, Len Elmore, Evan Washburn
4) Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Lewis Johnson
5) Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Dana Jacobson
6) Carter Blackburn, Mike Gminski, Jaime Maggio
7) Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl
8) Spero Dedes, Doug Gottlieb, Ros Gold-Onwude

Despite the #6 ranking, the article praises Gminski.

When I look at this list and don't see Elmore and Webber ranked at or near the bottom, I have to question it's legitimacy.

[captmojo]

At #4, I feel that Bonner rises above his teammates.

That is, once you can get past that ceaseless, lost smile.

[wavedukefan70s]

When I look at this list and don't see Elmore and Webber ranked at or near the bottom, I have to question it's legitimacy.

Both are bad.i do believe weber has completed the impossible task of being worse than elmore.actually gottlieb is in that mix also.

[Eternal Outlaw]

When I look at this list and don't see Elmore and Webber ranked at or near the bottom, I have to question it's legitimacy.

Being a vote, I'm guessing most fan bases don't care and in fact see a positive that they question calls in Duke's favor. It's like the cheap pop in pro wrestling where the guy says something about the city they are in, in this case, they get votes by simply questioning the validity of calls in Duke's favor.