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View Full Version : Is there a worse announcer in pro sports...


IrishHand
04-21-2003, 01:57 PM
than Bill Walton?

I'm a serious Laker fan. Have been for all of my conscious life. (Not sure who I cheered for from ages 0-2.) However, listening to Walton gush on and on about how magnificent, wonderful, perfect the Lakers are was simply painful. I have no problem with the home network announcers being pro-"home team". Their networks rely primarily on home fans, and home fans want to be excited about the home team. National broadcasts are another beast entirely. I expect announcers and commentators to at least pretend to be objective.

As I read in a sports article last week...a country of a quarter of a billion people and the best we can come up with for our primetime NBA games is Bill Walton?

He makes Tom Tolbert seem intelligent. Hey - at least Tolbert pointed out (at the start of the 2nd quarter) that Walton was running out of positive adjectives for the Lakers.

Clarkmeister
04-21-2003, 02:03 PM
Heh, I like em both.

Tolbert is flat-out entertaining, and Walton, while ridiculous at times, is that rare announcer not afraid to just RIP the players on the court. I liked Dierdorf for the same reason. I can live with the hyperbole as a tradeoff for a little honesty when people screw up.

Baltimore Ron
04-21-2003, 02:23 PM

Porcupine
04-21-2003, 02:36 PM
<font color="#666666"> Tolbert is flat-out entertaining, and Walton, while ridiculous at times, is that rare announcer not afraid to just RIP the players on the court. I liked Dierdorf for the same reason. I can live with the hyperbole as a tradeoff for a little honesty when people screw up. </font color>

It is nice to listen to announcers who aren't afraid to get on a player (or team) for playing HORRRRIBLE.

I really enjoyed Dierdorf, although occaisionally he seemed to play favorites. For example, I'd listened to him get all over an Eagles player for taking a (unnecessary in his opinion) shot at a player, but then 10 minutes later, talking with Art Donovan, Dan would chuckle "yep, that was back when football was football" in response to a story about nearly knocking a lineman out by hiding a roll of quarters in your hand.

HDPM
04-21-2003, 05:32 PM
McCarver. Baseball playoffs. American League. Start time of like 10:00 eastern time. Six-hour American League special where every batter sees about 57 pitches and the pitchers work slowly. McCarver can drone on for hours on miniscule topics. Like watching a ball roll foul. We get the replay 25 or 30 times. We see it hit a chunk of dirt. McCarver can talk for literally minutes saying over and over, "the ball hit a chunk of dirt. Or maybe a pebble. But it could have been dirt. Or a pebble formed by volcanic activity. Or just dirt, if it's in a clod. But it depends on the consistency of the dirt clod. Groundskeepers have recipes for their own particular dirt clods. Look at that replay. The ball was going foul, but then it hopped. It could have hopped from spin but dirt or a pebble can make it hop... It's hard to tell from the replay whether thae ball hopped because of spin or a dirt clod or a pebble. But it sure hopped there. And then it went foul. After hopping. And it is still a foul ball if it hopped due to either a dirt clod or a pebble. And it's not a big situation because it's the bottom of the fourth in this 12-9 pitcher's duel, no outs, bases clear and a 3-2 count, but still, you hate to see balls hop. Either from pebbles or dirt clods. Sometimes they hop funny just from spin. How the balls are wound can affect......" About this time you either have to kill yourself or turn off the tv.

IrishHand
04-21-2003, 06:12 PM
/forums/images/icons/smile.gif

I love Tim McCarver - I think he's the best baseball TV guy out there next to Bob Costas.

Re: Walton trashing players - I agree this is a good thing, but (a) it hardly makes up for his absolute brutality the other 98% of the time, (b) his trashing others is a secondary concern to the glorification of the Lakers, (c) he can bad-talk those players all he wants because - unlike most TV sports personalities - he doesn't have to ask them for interviews later on. This is probably a good thing - the complete lack of ulterior motive to avoid bad-mouthing NBA guys - but it also helps to explain why other, more competent and professional sportscasters are a little more reserved in their criticism.

Zeno
04-21-2003, 08:44 PM
HDPM - THAT! was the post of the year. By the way, use the Mute botton, one of the greatest inventions in all of eletronic history. It is the only way I can watch most baseball games.

Go Mariners!

-Zeno

HDPM
04-21-2003, 11:16 PM
First thanks for the kind words. But turning the sound off as you mention here and in the NFL post won't work. Because I would be watching and know that McCarver was talking. And Fox would show some stupid irrelevant replay over and over. About the fifth time I saw the ball hit the top part of one finger on the shortstop's glove in super slo-mo with an ultra close-up, I'd be imagining McCarver talking about it. I could not suspend my disbelief as to the non-existence of McCarver's babble. Then I'd be screaming at a TV on mute and have to kill myself or at least check into a mental facility as I obsessed about McCarver talking. /forums/images/icons/tongue.gif

On announcers other than McCarver I could watch with the sound off tho. I almost had to listening to Steve Levy call a hockey game tonight. But I got through it.

David Steele
04-21-2003, 11:20 PM
I really hate Joe Morgan. The great Jon Miller makes up for him though. I hear Miller for all the Giants radio broadcasts as well and it is much better with no Morgan.

Joe Morgan is constantly chattering with superstitious second guesses of the what the players or managers just did on the field. At times Miller almost ignores him for his 30 seconds and then continues on with something else.

D.

HDPM
04-21-2003, 11:27 PM
Miller on the radio on a daily basis must be great. I hate Joe Morgan less than I used to. I think he has mellowed some working next to Miller. But you're right, Miller is excellent.

n1stunnor
04-22-2003, 03:26 AM
Duane Kuiper has by far the best home run call.

"He hits it hiiiigh,he hits it deeeeeeeep,outta here!"

n1stunnor
04-22-2003, 03:33 AM

deathtoau
04-23-2003, 11:01 PM
It just goes back to my theory that before a major network will let someone announce a sporting event, they have to fail an IQ test. /forums/images/icons/tongue.gif

Tom D
04-24-2003, 03:07 PM
You're right, but after comming out of the college season with that blithering moron, Dick Vitale, Walton is a pleasant relief...somewhat.

My all-time hall of fame announcer's team is Dick Vitale, Phil Simms, and Tracy Austin. I'll bet the three of them, together, could turn off every TV set in the country in under eight seconds.

Tom D

Rockfish
04-25-2003, 01:37 PM

bernie
04-27-2003, 01:17 PM
todd christenson announcing a raider game

b

HDPM
04-27-2003, 09:19 PM
ooooh, I forgot about him. Now you reminded me. Thanks a lot. Now I'm thinking about him. You are evil.

scalf
04-28-2003, 06:59 AM
/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif a lawyer..he knows how to talk around things, confuse people, and most importantly get paid amazing amounts of money for performing this task...which everyone would be better off ...blah, blah,,,w/o...fgl /forums/images/icons/wink.gif /forums/images/icons/diamond.gif

IrishHand
04-28-2003, 09:49 AM
My dislike for Walton and his ignorance was best demonstrated by a 2nd-quarter exchange between him and Tolbert, who's stock rises every time he gets contrasted to Walton. It ran something like this:

W: "And why isn't Garnett on the floor? The Wolves need him in the game!"
T: "He is on the floor Bill, he just subbed in during this past timeout."
W: "They why aren't the Wolves getting him the ball? He needs to have the ball in his hands for them to win!"
T: "Bill - he just stepped on the floor and the Lakers have the ball."

Of course, even that brief moment of amusement can't make up for the countless times he referred to the Lakers "flawless" execution, "perfect" execution, and "imposing" defense when the Lakers were behind on the scoreboard. Seems to me that flawless, perfect execution and imposing defense would imply a lead in the game.