History was made in the NBA on Tuesday night, and NBC made sure viewers got a taste of it.
Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo scored 83 points, the second-most in NBA history. Adebayo tops the 81 points scored by Kobe Bryant in 2006, and is behind only the 100 points scored by Wilt Chamberlain in 1962 (and there’s no video footage of that one).
NBC was showing a high-quality matchup between the Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs, a game that featured Victor Wembanyama finishing with 39 points.
But NBC recognized the significance of what was happening in Miami and went with a live look-in of the FanDuel Sports Network Wizards-Heat broadcast to see Adebayo reach 83 points, while the Celtics and Spurs were early in the fourth quarter.
It was the local Miami FanDuel Sports Network broadcast, with Eric Reid on the play-by-play call.
Before the live look-in, NBC play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico, alongside color commentator Reggie Miller, updated viewers on Adebayo’s progress.
There are times when the live look-ins or the split-screens might annoy the average viewer, but aside from superfans of the Celtics and Spurs, this was a decision that was surely applauded by most people who were watching NBC.
And it’s not like most people have access to the Washington or Miami local broadcasts. America got to see history being made, and that’s a pretty cool, memorable moment for NBA fans. Well done by NBC.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.