Legendary broadcaster Marv Albert reportedly retiring after NBA playoffs
Marv Albert, the legendary sportscaster who spent nearly 60 years calling games, is reportedly calling it a career after the NBA playoffs.
According to Andrew Marchand at the New York Post, Albert plans to retire from his broadcasting duties once TNT has finished broadcasting games for the upcoming playoffs, and reported that TNT has started asking NBA players, coaches, and executives to pay tribute to Albert. No official announcement has been made yet, but Marchand said that one is expected "soon."
Albert is a titan in sports broadcasting, calling his first New York Knicks game in 1963 before being brought on as the team's permanent play-by-play man in 1967. He'd hold that job for 37 years. He's also called games for "NBA on NBC," CBS (NCAA tournament), and the then-New Jersey Nets. He's been TNT's main play-by-play broadcaster for over 20 years. Albert has kept busy outside of basketball as well, calling NHL games and NFL games as well as boxing, tennis, and horse racing.
Speculation about Albert's departure
There's been speculation for several weeks that Albert and his broadcast partner Chris Webber wouldn't be back for the 2021-2022 season. Albert, who will be 80 in June, is in the last year of a five-year deal and told the Post in February that his career is "winding down."
Webber had reportedly angered TNT executives in March when he told them "very late" that he wouldn't be working the 2021 NCAA Tournament. He was absent from TNT's final regular season broadcast on Thursday, and Marchand reported that Webber and TNT had parted ways.
With Webber's reported departure, we don't know who Albert will be calling his final games with. Marchand suggested that TNT could pair Albert with either Grant Hill or Reggie Miller.
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