Randy Smith
As the NBA Finals kicked off in Boston last week, history was made when veteran commentator Doris Burke became the first woman to call a professional men’s championship sporting event. Burke teamed up with Mike Breen and J.J. Riddick for Game 1 on Thursday night. But making history is nothing new for Doris Burke. Years ago she became the first woman to join the play-by-play team for a New York Knicks game, and in 2020 she became the first woman to join the NBA Radio play-by-play crew for the NBA Conference Finals and Championship Final.
Burke was a two-time Big East All-Star with the Providence women’s basketball team from 1986-1987. She became close with coach Billy Donovan and slowly worked her way up the sports broadcasting ladder. In 1994, I accepted a job to do the play-by-play for the Sun Belt Tournament Championship Game between Louisiana Tech and Western Kentucky. The game was broadcast on ESPN2, which was still in its infancy at the time. After accepting the job, I asked who the commentator for the game was. My producer told me she was a young woman who was 29 years old at the time and didn’t have much experience working in television. They paired me with Doris Burke because I had a laid back personality and seemed easy to work with.
I could tell she was a little nervous, but I did my best to reassure her. I stayed up late the night before the game to go over the lineup. While we did a lot of preparation for the game, we also talked about each other’s families. I could tell right away how much she loved her kids, and I hope she knew how much I loved mine. We worked beautifully together and made for some great play-by-play coverage. I could tell right away that she knew basketball really well, and with a few more games, she’d be as good a commentator as anyone could be. We said goodbye to each other after the game, and we never worked together again or kept in touch. But I followed her career and it was always a pleasure to see her as a sideline reporter for games, especially NBA games. I was always proud to be one of the first play-by-play announcers to work with her, and I always hoped that she would remember me fondly.
I have had the privilege of working with some of the best commentators in the business. Larry Conley, Mike Pratt, and Jerry Valencourt are just some of the many I have worked with. Conley and I have done many commentary appearances at basketball and baseball games over the years and it was always a pleasure working with him. However, the commentator who has risen to greater heights than anyone else is a woman I worked with for just one game. Doris Burke, keep up the great work and continue making history. You are one of the greatest commentators of all time.
* * *
Randy Smith can be contacted at rsmithsports@epbfi.com
