Emotional Dick Vitale signed off at end of ACC Championship Game, his last of the season

It’s been a long few years for Dick Vitale. And at the end of Saturday night’s ACC Tournament Championship Game between Duke and Louisville, the emotions of the last few years came pouring out.

Vitale thanked his fellow announcers, play-by-play man Dave O’Brien and color analyst Cory Alexander. He then noted that Saturday’s game would be the last he’d call this season before looking ahead to the future.

“I pray and hope that I can be back next year and maybe even better. And I hope and pray my doctor really helps me with my voice,” Vitale said.

“I think you sounded terrific tonight,” O’Brien interjected.

“Well, thank you. It’s a work. I have to listen to my doctor,” Vitale said. “I want to thank all the fans, too, and all the people have been so beautiful. All my people at ESPN, tolerating and putting up with me in terms of my issues I’ve had. You’ve been great, man. You’ve been great. Jimmy Pitaro, David Ceisler and Mike McQuade — all of you have been so good to me. I can’t thank you enough.”

At that point, Vitale, understandably, could no longer keep the tears in.

“It’s been like, to me, a miracle, really, to sit here with you guys,” he said. “I can’t tell you how much you meant to me. It’s been unbelievable. A tough three years, those four cancer battles that I don’t wish on anybody. Cancer sucks. I’ll tell you this. Anybody battling cancer, please listen. Think positive always and have faith — and believe. And if you’re out there as a person that knows somebody with cancer, send him a text message. Send him a phone call, or make a phone call. The bottom line, it means so much.

“I know it meant a lot to me in my darkest moment, when I was in the hospital doing chemo and had a bad, bad day,” he continued. “Man, it was a tough, tough time. I had to stay overnight and my family left. I woke up crying like crazy. And the nurse came in and cheered me up. And then I looked at my phone, and on my phone were messages from all over the country. Rick Barnes, Tom Izzo, (John) Calipari, coaches.”

O’Brien then shared that during the first half of Saturday’s game, Gloria James, LeBron James’ mother, sent Vitale a message.

While battling cancer, Vitale was away from the booth for nearly two years until his return in February. And if his impact on college basketball wasn’t known before then, it soon became clear with the number of tributes he received from coaches, players and fellow announcers. And his return to broadcasting wasn’t strictly sentimental. On Saturday, Vitale was critical of the ACC as a whole for its failure to adapt to NIL and the transfer portal, while also predicting that Duke would win the national championship.