Top Broadcasters Share What Games They Would Like To Have Called
The history of sports is overflowing with great games in every sport imaginable, so when Sports Illustrated's Jimmy Traina decided to ask the top play-by-play broadcasters in the nation which game throughout history would you most like to have called, it's not surprising that the answered would bring back some of the greatest sports memories.
Traina went straight to the top for this one, getting Al Michaels, Jim Nantz, Joe Buck, and a who's who list of others to answer share their top game, and you can read all about them in the link above. .
Reading this got my attention quickly, having gotten my start in radio in 1991 and never achieving the level of success to call such incredible games as these men have called, the thought of being able to pick any game in the history of sports to have called worked well for me since it's a fantasy anyway.
So without further ado, which game would I choose to call if I could select any single game in the history of sports?
1992 Olympic Gold Medal Game
The Dream Team, comprised of some of the all-time greatest basketball players in the history of the game finished off an 8-0 run with total domination of the world in a 117-85 win over Croatia in the gold medal game in Barcelona, Spain.
This game, though for the gold medal wasn't the thing that would have me selecting it, the team was.
How dominant was this team?
Their average margin of victory in the Olympics was a mind-boggling 43.8 ppg, led by Charles Barkley's 18.0 ppg average in the eight games. Oh, and there were some other guys on that too, guys who people know by heart. Names like Michael, Magic, Bird, The Mailman, Clyde "the Glide," The Admiral, and Scottie.
It was, without doubt, the greatest collection of basketball talent ever assembled, and the greatest team ever.
Of all those greats, Magic was my man. I remember watching he and Bird go at it in the NCAA Tournament when Johnson's Michigan State Spartans knocked off Bird's Indiana State team, and I became a Lakers fan the second they drafted Johnson.
I've been fortunate to meet a lot of former players, mostly NFL, but meeting two members of the Dream Team rank at the top of the list.
One should be easy for all Vanderbilt fans. I got the opportunity to spend a minute with Scottie Pippen following a Commodore basketball game this season, though I didn't ask for a picture for professional reasons.
The other?
Me and "The Admiral"
Photo Courtesy: Greg Arias-SI.com
It's ok to be a fan of greatness right?
Now it's your turn, which game in sports history would you choose if you could call one game?
Follow Greg on Twitter @GregAriasSports and @SIVanderbilt or Facebook at Vanderbilt Commodores-Maven
