It’s been 24 years since then-Michigan forward Chris Webber called a timeout he didn’t have during the final seconds of the 1993 national title game between the Wolverines and North Carolina.
And yet, according to Webber’s NCAA Tournament broadcast partner Brian Anderson, Webber—now an analyst for Turner Sports—still hears about the incident all the time.
In an interview with The PostGame’s Jeff Eisenband, Anderson said that Webber has fans yell “Timeout!” at him while he’s broadcasting games, particularly on the home turf of his “Fab Five” Michigan teams’ biggest rivals.
Traveling with him and working with him in a setting, you really get to experience how difficult it can be for a guy like Chris Webber. He gets a lot of love and a lot of praise and a lot of pictures and photos, but you also hear a lot of meanness from the crowd too. I cannot tell you how many times I heard the phrase, “Timeout!” yelled at him during these few days in Greenville, especially from Duke fans and North Carolina fans. There was a lot of that. You get a lot of, “Fab Five!” It’s a tough existence for him I would say, but he puts a lot of effort into being a great broadcaster and he’s better every year and I love him.
Asked whether he talks with Webber about the hecklers, Anderson said the five-time NBA All-Star doesn’t let it bother him:
No, other than to say, because I asked him, “Man, it’s tough being you, isn’t it?” He goes, “Yeah, but it’s all good, they’re just passionate fans.” He has a great attitude about it. He compartmentalizes those moments. And I think for me, watching him function and operate, and obviously he didn’t allow that to define him at all and went on to have a Hall of Fame career.
At this point Webber has done enough to make everyone forget about that one bone-headed mistake. He was a stud in the NBA, averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds over a 15-year NBA career that could lead him to the Hall of Fame. Now he’s a highly competent studio and game analyst who’s a big part of TNT’s NBA coverage and Turner Sports’ March Madness coverage.
Also, he’s probably enjoying the NCAA Tournament more than anyone.
https://twitter.com/SInow/status/845088847327383552
Anyway, it’s probably time to let the whole timeout thing go.
About Alex Putterman
Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.