Brian Davis is a former television play-by-play announcer, most recently of the Oklahoma City Thunder, an NBA franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[1]
Sportscasting biography
editIn 2004, he was host of Seattle SuperSonics telecasts, called occasional Sonics games, and also worked for NBA Radio as a sideline reporter and studio host. Davis also was a member of the Chicago Bulls broadcasts as a television studio host and has called play-by-play for college football and basketball for the Big Ten Conference, Pacific-10 Conference, Conference USA, and the Mid-American Conference.[2] On the professional side other than NBA basketball, Davis was the radio voice of the Seattle Seahawks, college football for CBS Radio/Westwood One, the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Fire S.C., and preseason games for the Arizona Cardinals.[3] He was a sports anchor for CBS Radio and all Chicago-news affiliates.[4] Davis has covered the Olympics, Stanley Cup Finals, the NBA Finals, DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball, and hosted radio broadcasts for the Chicago Blackhawks and Bears.[5]
Personal
editDavis graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in journalism. He resides in Oklahoma City with his spouse, Judy. Brian has won numerous awards in his career.
Controversies
editDuring a basketball game on April 11, 2018, Davis described Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook as playing "out of his cotton-picking mind" after an assist against the Memphis Grizzlies.[6] Due to offensive racial connotations of this phrase, Davis apologized for the remark. The Thunder announced that Davis would be suspended for game one of the Thunder's first-round Western Conference playoff series against the Utah Jazz.[7][8] After the season the Thunder declined to renew the contract of the only television play-by-play announcer the team has had since it relocated in 2008. A team statement did not give a reason for the decision.[9]
References
edit- ^ "Brian Davis". Themandelgroup.tv. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ "THUNDER: Thunder Broadcast Bios". NBA.com. Archived from the original on 2012-01-19. Retrieved 2013-02-11.
- ^ [1] [permanent dead link]
- ^ "Brian Davis: A New Voice for a New Fan". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ "Brian Davis: Play-by-play voice". Thunderfans.com. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ "Thunder broadcaster who used 'cotton-picking' in Russell Westbrook call not renewed". USA Today.
- ^ "Thunder Announcer Apologizes for Russell Westbrook Cotton Picking Reference". Bleacher Report.
- ^ "Thunder announcer suspended one game after racially insensitive comment about Russell Westbrook". 13 April 2018.
- ^ "Thunder won't renew contract of announcer Brian Davis". 15 June 2018.