Mike Breen
Mike Breen | |
---|---|
Born | Michael Breen May 22, 1961 New York City, U.S. |
Education | Fordham University |
Years active | 1991–present |
Notable credits | |
Title | Sportscaster |
Spouse | Rosanne Breen |
Children | 3 |
Sports commentary career | |
Sports |
Michael Breen (born May 22, 1961) is an American
Biography
Early life
Breen was raised in
Basketball
Breen started doing play-by-play for the Marist College Red Foxes basketball team in 1985. From 1991 to 1997 he worked with the Knicks as a radio announcer for WFAN. For the 1997–98 season, Breen was promoted to television play-by-play for the Knicks, as Marv Albert was fired from MSG Network following his infamous sex scandal. Upon Albert's return in 1999, he became his backup on MSG Network and continued as the lead announcer on WFAN. In 2004 he became the lead Knicks play-by-play following Albert's second dismissal from the network.
For the
Breen is known for yelling the word "BANG!" (or others such as "It's good!" or "Puts it in!") after a key shot is made, usually very late in the game. Famous "Bang!" or "Santa Maria!" calls include
Some of his "BANG!" calls include the following: "They do have a timeout, decide not to use it, Curry way downtown, BANG! BANG! OH WHAT A SHOT BY CURRY! [6]and in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals "James catches puts up a three, won't go, rebound Bosh, back out to Allen his three pointer BANG! Tie game with 5 seconds remaining!"[7]
When the Knicks made the
Some of Breen's current and past broadcast partners were employed with the Knicks at one point. The list includes former Knicks head coaches Hubie Brown and Jeff Van Gundy, former Knicks players Mark Jackson and Walt Frazier, and former Knicks radio color announcer John Andariese. While working alongside Bill Walton on ESPN, Breen was on hand for the infamous Pacers–Pistons brawl on November 19, 2004. Two seasons later, Breen was on hand for the Knicks–Nuggets brawl with MSG Network on December 16, 2006.[8][9] The former was detailed in ESPN's First Take talk show on The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick.[10]
In addition, he was also the voice of the
Providing emphasis on how important to the basketball community Breen has been, on May 14, 2021, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and was awarded the Curt Gowdy Media Award. These are two of the most prestigious accolades someone in this field can attain. When presented with the Curt Gowdy Media Award, Breen stated in his acceptance speech, “I’ve had this enormous privilege to call so many great moments in NBA history, but the best part, the best part, has always been the lifetime of friendships that the game has given me.”[11]
In Game 7 of the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals, as well as the first two games of the 2022 NBA Finals, Breen sat out of the broadcasting team due to a positive COVID-19 test, and was replaced by Mark Jones.[12] Breen returned in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.[13][14]
In 2023, following a wave of layoffs which included his partners Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson, Breen was the only remaining commentator in the lead broadcast team, with Doris Burke and former NBA coach Doc Rivers joining the lead team.[15]
Olympics
Breen has announced in five
Radio
Breen has been a fixture on the radio as well. He began his professional radio career as a sportscaster on
Personal life
Breen resides on Long Island, New York, with his wife Rosanne and their three children.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "Mike Breen". ESPN Press Room U.S. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
- ^ "2023 Sports Emmy Winners" (PDF). 2023 Sports Emmy Awards. NATAS. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
- ^ "Mike Breen". MSG.com. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011.
- ^ Rollins, Khadrice (June 18, 2019). "The Best of 'Bang!': Mike Breen's 10 Best 'Bangs' of the Decade". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ "BANG! Here's Mike Breen's iconic NBA catchphrase origin story". For The Win. May 3, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEMVGHoenXM
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr6XsZVb-ZE
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "2006 Knicks-Nuggets Brawl". YouTube.
- New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Mike Breen Opens Up About Calling The Malice At The Palace, retrieved March 23, 2024
- ^ "NBA Announcer Mike Breen Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame". Fordham Newsroom. May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
- ^ Rivera, Joe (May 29, 2022). "Where is Mike Breen? Why ESPN's Mark Jones is calling Celtics vs. Heat Game 7 instead". The Sporting News. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
- ^ Jack Baer (June 8, 2022). "NBA Finals: ESPN's Mike Breen back after bout with COVID-19". Sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
- ^ Crowley, Kerry (June 8, 2022). "NBA Finals: Top ESPN broadcaster returning from COVID to call Game 3, per report". The Mercury News. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Tapp, Tom (August 14, 2023). "ESPN Revamps No. 1 On-Air NBA Announcing Team & Sets Up History-Making Finals Run For Doris Burke". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
- ^ Ray Frager (July 16, 2008). "Medium Well: Your NBC Olympics lineup – A blog on sports media, news and networks – baltimoresun.com". Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 5, 2008.