Tag: Doris Burke

Here’s every ESPN NBA announcer for the 2024-25 season

ESPN’s NBA crew features some familiar names.

ESPN is broadcasting NBA games for a 23rd consecutive year this season, and the announcers set to rotate between games will be familiar to many fans, with the team of Mike Breen, Doris Burke and Cassidy Hubbarth getting joined by Richard Jefferson (at least to start the season). JJ Redick is off the top team given that he’s coaching the Lakers now.

Although we wish we could list the announcers for every game, that’s impossible, especially when there’s some mixing and matching throughout the season.

That said, here’s a look at ESPN’s entire lineup of broadcasters, including play-by-play announcers, analysts and sideline reporters.

Play-by-play

  • Mike Breen
  • Michael Grady
  • Mark Jones
  • Dave Pasch
  • Ryan Ruocco

Analysts

  • Cory Alexander
  • Jay Bilas
  • Hubie Brown
  • Doris Burke
  • Richard Jefferson
  • Tim Legler
  • Bob Myers
  • Stephanie White

Sideline reporters

  • Katie George
  • Angel Gray
  • Cassidy Hubbarth
  • Monica McNutt
  • Lisa Salters
  • Jorge Sedano

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Doris Burke evoked recent Caitlin Clark discourse during a Mavericks foul in the NBA Finals

ESPN’s Doris Burke knew exactly what she was doing with this call.

After a hard foul on Kristaps Porzingis during Game 5 of the NBA Finals, ESPN’s Doris Burke made a spot-on observation.

Porzingis, who has played limited action during the series for Boston due to multiple injuries, hit the floor after he was met with overly physical defense from Dallas forward P.J. Washington.

You can watch the sequence as it unfolded below, but it didn’t look fun for Porzingis and he seemed reasonably and expectedly upset afterward:

As the broadcast showed a replay of the events, though, Burke noted that such a foul probably would have caused a week-long debate had it happened to WNBA rookie Caitlin Clark.

Recent fouls on Clark have, unfortunately, stirred far too many debates in the basketball world.

You can listen to Burke’s call, which was just so perfectly on the nose:

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Doris Burke criticized Luka Doncic for arguing Game 3 call and getting up too late to help defend Celtics 3-pointer

Doris Burke wasn’t too pleased with Luka Doncic during this NBA Finals sequence.

ESPN NBA broadcaster Doris Burke made a very pointed remark about Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic during Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Finals on Wednesday night.

As the series headed to Dallas, the Mavericks found themselves with a small lead toward the end of the first quarter when Doncic attempted a 3-pointer that bounced off the rim and went right to the Boston Celtics.

During the transition, Doncic was slow to get up and didn’t get down the court fast enough to stop Celtics forward Sam Hauser from nailing his own 3-point shot to get Boston within three points.

Burke felt that Doncic was trying too hard in the moment to “bark at the officials” and didn’t get up quickly enough to keep his team from playing “5-on-4” basketball.

That’s pretty sharp criticism from Burke for Doncic, who has emerged during this NBA playoffs as one of the true stars of the league.

It’s hard to disagree with her, too. Him getting up just a bit sooner could’ve made a difference to keep the Celtics from cutting into Dallas’ lead.

Feature image courtesy of ESPN. 

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JJ Redick gave a classy on-air shout out to Doris Burke for her historic NBA Finals broadcast

Doris Burke deserves all the love for this achievement.

The first game of the 2024 NBA Finals was a blowout victory for the Celtics, but for other reasons, it was also historical for Doris Burke.

While she was already long considered a legend in the industry, Burke joined ESPN’s lead NBA broadcasting team earlier this season. Later in the season, when broadcasting partner Doc Rivers left the booth to take over as the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, JJ Redick took over and join Burke.

So as the two of them joined Mike Breen on the call for the NBA Finals, it’s worth noting that Burke’s appearance was legitimately historic during Game 1 on Thursday night. She became the first woman to serve as a game analyst on the television broadcast of a championship final in either the NBA, NFL, MLB, or NHL.

After the broadcast ended before the lead-in to SportsCenter, it was time for Redick to acknowledge this accomplish:

“I just want to say how proud I am of my teammate Doris Burke, who made history tonight calling this NBA Finals game. Look, I’m a newbie at this. I called my first tonight. It’s meaningless in the grand scheme of things. What she did tonight is historic. I’m so proud of you. I love you. It’s so great working with you.”

Burke seemed genuinely moved by the praise and told Redick not to make her cry because he is “the best” teammate.

Scott Van Pelt, who was hosting the evening SportsCenter show, echoed Redick’s comments and hoped that Burke was able to find time to enjoy her achievement.

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Doris Burke gave JJ Redick hilarious advice about using Twitter after he ranted about a Joel Embiid criticism

Doris Burke listened to JJ Redick’s Joel Embiid rant and quickly realized the real problem.

Peruse NBA Twitter while Joel Embiid plays on any given night, and you might notice a common theme.

Some fans on the platform like to talk about how the Philadelphia 76ers superstar “baits” for free throw attempts rather than always relying on old-fashioned scoring. This criticism irked NBA analyst JJ Redick, who came to the defense of Embiid as he shot free throws during the 76ers’ play-in win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.

However, as Redick passionately ranted about the unfairness of the Embiid critique, his ESPN broadcast partner Doris Burke noticed a particular tick in his tangent. When pressing Redick about where he got this Embiid criticism from, he revealed he read it on NBA Twitter.

Burke quickly joked that that was Redick’s problem in the first place: He was reading too much Twitter.

We have fair points from both Redick and Burke here.

Drawing fouls against NBA-caliber defenders is a skill, something that is not legislated against by league rules as long there is an actual foul. It’s also just smart because you’re not always going to have a clean shot at the basket, and getting to the line can be integral for your team. Also, someone of Embiid’s listed 7-foot, 280-pound stature probably is getting fouled that much because he’s just so big and strong, and no one can reasonably defend him one-on-one. (Note: Embiid has averaged over 11 free throw attempts per game over each of the last three seasons, which comfortably leads the NBA.)

To Burke’s point, yes, Redick was probably just reading too much Twitter. That is another evergreen lesson for us. Don’t spend too much time, if any, reading other random people’s opinions on social media.

Mike Breen playfully roasted Doc Rivers after leaving ESPN for Bucks coaching job

Mike Breen gave Doc Rivers a very funny farewell from ESPN.

After the Milwaukee Bucks hired Doc Rivers as their new head coach this week, ESPN’s Mike Breen paid a hysterical tribute to his former co-worker.

Rivers wasn’t with ESPN very long before heading back to the NBA as a head coach, and Breen noted the irony as he joked about Rivers making such a swift career transition.

The best line had to be Breen thanking Rivers for his “many weeks of service” with the network, which is pretty accurate since Rivers really wasn’t with ESPN very long at all.

May we all have a co-worker like Breen to send us off like this if we leave for another job one day.

However, it was clear after Breen’s kidding around how much he and fellow ESPN broadcaster Doris Burke respect Rivers and enjoyed working with him for the time that they had.

Burke in particular delivered a moving farewell to Rivers as the latter tries to win another NBA title with the Bucks in his coaching return.

While we’re sure ESPN would take Rivers back in a heartbeat if the Milwaukee job doesn’t work out, he at least got a very fitting on-air goodbye from two of his former ESPN colleagues.

Feature image courtesy of ESPN.

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Mike Breen said he was saddened, surprised on losing Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy in ESPN cuts

You have to feel for Mike Breen here.

With ESPN letting go of commentators Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy, it leaves the network’s lead NBA announcer Mike Breen without his longtime sidekicks.

Speaking with The New York Post, Breen expressed his sadness over Jackson and Van Gundy being gone from the network.

They’ll reportedly be replaced by longtime NBA reporter Doris Burke and former NBA coach Doc Rivers.

It’ll be a tough transition for Breen, however, as he’d really developed a great chemistry with Jackson and Van Gundy in the years they’d all worked together.

You could tell in Breen’s words how much the partnership meant to him.

“It’s sad because we really thought we had something special and that’s going to be the thought going forward is that we were able to do it a lot longer than anybody ever did,” Breen told The Post. “It’s something we’ll all treasure, but we just wish it was a little bit longer.

“You don’t expect it, because it was such a great team and to have it completely broken up was a surprise.”

This is a tough turn of events for Breen, but Burke and Rivers definitely could replace Jackson and Van Gundy with success.

It’s just never easy to say goodbye to your on-air partners, so we definitely get where Breen is coming from with his words. NBA fans will see how the transition goes when ESPN’s game coverage returns this fall.

Dillon Brooks blames everyone but himself for his perception as an NBA villain

Dillon Brooks doesn’t seem to the think he’s the reason for his reputation as an NBA villain.

Memphis Grizzlies forward/guard Dillon Brooks has fully made his NBA heel turn during this year’s playoff stretch.

Brooks earned a flagrant 2 foul and an ejection for hitting LeBron James in the groin during Saturday night’s playoff tilt against the Los Angeles Lakers.

As you can imagine, the vibes on Brooks are not positive right now.

Folks were unimpressed with Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant’s defense of Brooks’ actions, and ESPN commentator Doris Burke gave a brutal assessment of Brooks’ NBA skill set during Saturday’s game.

To boot, this is not the first time this season Brooks has gotten flak for hitting another NBA player in the groin this season. He pulled the same move on Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell in February.

You also have to remember the hit on Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II in last year’s playoffs that earned Brooks a flagrant 2 foul and Payton a playoff-ending fractured elbow.

Well, Brooks doesn’t seem to be looking too hard in the mirror for his designation as one of the NBA’s premiere villains. According to him, it’s the media and the fans who are driving that narrative.

Alright, it doesn’t take but a quick Google search to see that Brooks is very much to blame in part for his reputation around the league.

He’s had no problem getting into beefs with Golden State Warriors players like Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, and his feuding with James reached an ugly nadir on Saturday.

If Brooks won’t take even some accountability for his actions, that’s more than his right. However, he shouldn’t expect the villain’s moniker to fall away anytime soon. As long as his antics continue, so will the critiques.

Doris Burke brutally broke down Dillon Brooks’ weaknesses in just a few seconds

This analysis was probably true but still SO savage.

Dillon Brooks might be quickly learning the drawbacks of putting himself in the spotlight with a “beef” against LeBron James.

Never mind the Memphis Grizzlies’ forward appearing to punch James in the groin or James outright dismissing making statements as unnecessary: Brooks’ weaknesses as an NBA player are also being called into question.

Take ESPN’s Doris Burke’s analysis of Brooks’ game during the Grizzlies’ 110-101 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. As Brooks waited to inbound the ball in the early goings, Burke took a mere few seconds to break down the forward’s limitations as an NBA player.

While Burke was doing her job and definitely didn’t mean anything additional by it, it was still such a concise, cold breakdown of Brooks’ flaws:

PHEW! Again, nothing about this analysis is necessarily false.

While Brooks is one of the best basketball players in the world by virtue of playing in the NBA, he is a role player. There’s nothing wrong with that! But it’s who he is, nonetheless. Still, Burke’s breakdown here was a flamethrower to what he sometimes brings to the table.

Doris Burke, Al Horford and Brad Stevens on the infamous ‘confetti game’ vs. 76ers

There to witness it in person and give coverage to fans at home trying to make sense of the delay before the eventual Boston win was iconic NBA broadcaster Doris Burke, as were veteran big man Al Horford and then-coach (and now president) Brad Stevens.

In a moment similar to the legendary NBA Finals matchup between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers in which the latter was ready to celebrate a series win against the Celtics with balloons and a band slated to play “Happy Days are Here Again,” the iconic contest between Boston and the Philadelphia 76ers in which the Sixers prematurely dropped confetti on the court before they’d secured a win against the Celtics is the stuff of legend.

Iconic NBA broadcaster Doris Burke, veteran big man Al Horford and then-coach (and now team president) Brad Stevens were there. To discuss that game, the trio appeared on the team-produced “View From the Rafters” podcast.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear it in full.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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