A Refreshing Voice in Sportscasting Analysis

Over the last 20-25 years, as many media conglomerates have bought-up television and cable networks that carry sportscasts, it seems like game analysts have gotten more watered-down and vanilla with their commentary.

Not that they, for the most part, can’t accurately explain the hit and run, the pick and roll or the 4-3 defense - but today’s sports analysts, as a whole, stay far away from statements that could be construed as negative or critical and spin everything into positives…really boring stuff.

Nobody turns on a game to listen to an analyst degrade or embarrass an athlete or coach, but from time to time a play or certain action on the playing field needs to be called-out and (to paraphrase from one of the all-time best) “Tell it Like it Is”.

When a player doesn’t run out a ground ball, get back on defense, or try to make a tackle instead of just pushing an opponent out of bounds, you rarely hear an analyst appropriately reprimand that player.

A big reason for this “censorship”, I believe, is the trend of media conglomerates owning both the team and network, or being heavily invested into a particular sports league – thus driving the conglomerates to extreme concern about brand and image.

When an ownership group has that type of control its good business sense to pressure your sports analysts into making only positive statements about players, athletes, coaches and the overall game. It’s good PR for your product.

But, as a result, the broadcast suffers because the game analysis is not true to the fans and viewers.

So when a voice comes along that pays no attention to the inside corporate b.s. that restricts most analysts - you have to stand up, take notice and appreciate it.

While watching Game 2 of the NBA Finals Sunday night, I realized how great ESPN/ABC analyst Jeff Van Gundy is – not only for his detailed commentary as a former NBA head coach but because, frankly, he pulls no punches.

Because most analysts could be deemed “non-threatening” and continually towing the company line in the manor they announce games, Van Gundy jumps right out and smacks you with his brutal honesty and tough insight.

I’m guessing he coaches the same way he announces; tough but fair.

During the aforementioned Game 2, play-by-play man Mike Breen was discussing the return of Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson. Nelson had been injured since February but had rehabilitated his right shoulder in time to play in the Finals.

Breen went on to say that upon his return to practice leading up to the Finals, Nelson approached teammates Rafer Alston and Anthony Johnson, also both point guards, to seek their permission to rejoin the team and take up the bulk of the minutes the two backups had been sharing while he was out.

The point of the story was that Nelson, an all-star, is such a great teammate and swell guy, he was considerate enough to “ask permission” to return to action - clearly a public relations story planted by the Magic.

Van Gundy immediately ripped the ridiculous tale Breen was spinning.

Perhaps Nelson did discuss his return and the effect it would have with Alston’s and Johnson’s playing time. But it’s absurd to believe that an athlete playing at the level Nelson is would “ask permission” from the two backups for anything - let alone to return to the floor in the NBA Finals.

It was so refreshing to listen to Van Gundy completely shred and denounce, in his satirical style, the fable while hammering the Magic’s PR fairytale.

Van Gundy reminds me of Bill Walton, another basketball analyst who respects the game enough to “Tell it Like it Is”.

For baseball, Fox analyst Tim McCarver and SNY-Mets analyst Keith Hernandez are also blunt but fair with their commentary (who can ever forget Deion Sanders’ cowardly water cooler attack on McCarver following the Atlanta Braves 1992 NLCS win, "You know, Deion, you're a real man.”).

The best NFL analyst, I believe, is Phil Simms of CBS Sports. His commentary and insight also stands true to the game and the fans.

I encourage readers to reply with their thoughts on the best and worst analysts. I’ll post the responses in a few days.