Doc was a great commentator during the early 2000s and it was the consensus opinion at the time that he did a great job. [I’d also argue that his call on the Tayshaun Prince block on Reggie is one of the all time great calls.](https://youtu.be/ftLUlmZl3yc) While the play by play announcer downplayed it a bit, Doc really sold just how incredible the block was, and to do that in real time without knowing how iconic the block would end up being made the call even more impressive.
I get people are concerned about his voice being shot but it really doesn’t sound terrible during some of his more recent podcast interviews. I also think too many younger fans who only know Doc as the coach who blows 3-1 leads are letting that influence their perception of him as a commentator. But as someone who watched him commentate before, I’m confident he’ll do a great job.
by augustus624
25 Comments
They just love to hate. I’m really excited for Doc to be broadcasting, it’s Burke I’m not looking forward to.
His voice has quite clearly become more grating, however
Yeah but it’s the second round and he doesn’t do too great in those
Marv Albert used to be a good commentator then he became a drooling mouth breathing idiot in his old age
Correct. Doc was great as a commentator last time around. He’s gonna be a massive upgrade over Jackson.
I was around at the time and I remember feeling like he wasn’t the problem but he wasn’t really elevating the broadcast either. It didn’t help that ESPN/ABC’s broadcasts of the NBA were REALLY bad at the time. Al Michaels didn’t care about basketball and didn’t want to be there, while to be frank boring teams like the Spurs and Pistons kept making deep playoff runs so he got bogged down with that.
Overall yes he will be way better than Mark Jackson and may even rival JVG without the pitfalls of JVG complaining too much. But as commentators at ESPN go I do think RJeff and Redick are better.
Hahahahaha all time great calls?? O boy
I don’t think it’s that people think he doesn’t know the game.
Dude just sounds like he spend last night smoking two packs while talking the ear off a supermodel next to the speakers at a Van Halen concert.
It really has nothing to do with what he says. He cannot speak like a normal human any longer and that is why he is a poor choice
His voice sucks though.
He’s got to be a slick talker, that’s the main reason he kept getting coaching jobs as long as he did. Also how a guy named Glenn got people to call him Doc.
I hate his voice
yeah but it sounds like he eats rocks and cigarettes for breakfast
You put to much faith into this sub. They just follow narratives or whatever joke that gets the most upvotes
It’s not his commentating skills we don’t like. He’ll be fine there. It’s his terrible voice.
When you sound like you have a cigar sizzling in your esophagus, then you shouldn’t be a commentator. It’s why Marv Albert was so hard to listen to in the end.
He was on the Bill Simmons podcast lash month and it rocked. Dude is a mediocre coach but certainly knows the game and is entertaining as hell to hear talk about it.
They prbly don’t know Steve Kerr was too
I’m more annoyed with Doris Burke getting the job than I am with Doc getting the job
Is everyone just ignoring that 69-67 with 14 seconds left? I bet most people here are too young to even fathom those kind of games. Also I watched this live, went to games in this series, and have rewatched this block so many times but never realized that was Doc Rivers.
The hard part is listening to his voice.
He was nowhere near as raspy and old as he was then which is my main concern
While that may be true, can he talk for a whole game this time around?
I remember watching this live! What a crazy moment and the score’s only in the 60’s lmao
I just don’t know if I can listen to his voice for a full season
As a 15 year old kid and huge Pistons fan, Doc fucking nailed that moment. Still gives me chills almost 20 years later.