Marv Albert is one of the best announcers in the NBA, and all of sports. His career is legendary, so it made sense for him to get the nod to announce the 2017 NBA All-Star Game. The only issue with that is that the exhibition game is extremely difficult to talk about in the moment, due to the lack of effort and excitement provided by the players on the court.
A tough gig
The biggest issue for Albert may have been pronunciation. He waged a battle throughout the All-Star Game with the name of one of the Eastern Conference starters, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokuonmpo.
Granted, the name of the Greek national is a difficult one and people have taken to calling him "The Greek Freak" instead. Still, Albert spent the entirety of the game in a wordy battle he could not win.
Albert spent the rest of the All-Star Game pointing out the obvious to fans who probably were not oblivious to the truths. He was quick to remind people that the game was supposed to take place in Charlotte, not New Orleans; it was moved due to North Carolina's disciminating HB2 law. He also mentioned how little defense was being played, something true of the event every year and borne out by the 189 combined points in the first half.
Legend of the industry
Despite the struggles he endured on Sunday night, there was no better choice for the event than Marv Albert.
He can make the All-Star Game somewhat interesting with his human interest stories about the players, the fans, and the people touched by the game of basketball. At the least, he has one of the silkiest voices in the industry.
Albert has been a lead NBA commentator for TNT since 1999 and served as a broadcaster for the New York Knicks for several decades.
At the age of 75, his career is probably much closer to the end than the beginning. Make fun of him for his struggles during the All-Star Game, but Albert is one of the true titans of the broadcast industry; he will surely be missed when his time working basketball games comes to an end, even if he isn't missed after Sunday.
