By Cyote Williams | Times Vedette
While watching game one of the NBA Western Conference Finals, I couldn’t help but notice that ESPN was turning down the volume on the crowd in the some of the biggest moments in this instant classic, which featured double overtime between two of the game’s biggest super stars and two of the most talented teams the league has seen.
The game was being played in Oklahoma City, known for having one of the loudest, most passionate fanbases in the NBA. As the clock wound down to its final moments, big shot after big shot was being hit, and the OKC crowd was going ballistic. But you wouldn’t be able to tell this if you were watching at home. I had to find full game highlights to hear it. Skip to 13:30 in the video to hear for yourself. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the back-to-back league MVP, hits a game-tying shot as time winds down, but the crowd noise is quieted so we can hear Mike Tirico.
Don’t get me wrong, Tirico is my favorite announcer in all of sports. But why quiet the fan noise so we can hear him? Massive crowd pops are one of the best things about sports. An entire arena with fans jumping and screaming at the top of their lungs is part of what makes these games so entertaining. I wasn’t the only one who noticed.
This video shows the ESPN broadcast being drowned out after a Jayson Tatum game winner in the 2022 playoffs. Mike Breen (another excellent commentator) can barely be heard over the Boston crowd (another notoriously raucous fan base). I mean, how much better does that sound? Listen to this Portland crowd for a recent WNBA game. Fans are going nuts for this clutch basket, and it only adds to the product.
Fans watching at home also complained that the New York Knicks crowd, again, another famous fan base, seemed way too quiet on the broadcast. This, despite Jalen Brunson orchestrating the second-biggest fourth-quarter playoff comeback of the last 30 years. Inside the building? A much different story. This Knicks fan put together an edited version of the broadcast that accurately reflected the crowd noise. It sounds so much better. It sounds like sports.
I decided to find some of my favorite crowd pops over the years from various sporting events. Crowds going bananas during big moments scratches that ear worm for me. A recent one: Nate Heise’s go ahead three against Houston this season. Three seasons ago, Reiss Nelson scoring for my favorite soccer team capped off an insane late comeback against Bournemouth with a wonderful strike, sending the north London crowd into a frenzy. For you older wrestling fans, there’s probably no moment louder than Mankind defeating The Rock for the WWF title thanks to Stone Cold Steve Austin.
So, please, ESPN, ABC, NBC or whichever it may be, leave the crowd noise alone. It’s part of why we watch.
Reach out with comments, suggestions, story ideas and more to cyote@dmcityview.com.