NEW YORK — “Yessss!”
Marv Albert, the legendary voice of the Knicks spanning four decades, is calling at least one more game at Madison Square Garden, getting the play-by-play assignment with TNT for Wednesday’s Game 5 against the Hawks.
Albert, 79, announced his retirement following this year’s Conference finals, ending a nearly 60-year Hall of Fame career that started as the radio voice of the Knicks in the late 1960s. Albert moved to television, both nationally and on MSG Network, but was fired by owner James Dolan in 2004 for being honest about the Knicks’ poor play.
He became persona non grata at MSG and wasn’t invited to the 50th anniversary of the team’s 1970 championship, a ceremony that was ultimately canceled anyway because of the pandemic. As Albert told the New York Daily News last year, “I had some disagreements with the owner. And he was upset about objectivity.”
Still, to those who experienced a Knicks’ Golden Era with Patrick Ewing in the 1990s, Albert’s voice served as the soundtrack. He was also the national voice on NBC during Michael Jordan’s incredible run.
“There is no voice more closely associated with NBA basketball than Marv Albert’s,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said.
Fittingly, Albert’s partner for Wednesday’s game is TNT analyst Reggie Miller, the former Garden villain of the 1990s. He can provide unique perspective since Trae Young, the Hawks guard, has embraced that role of enemy during this series.
The Knicks are down 3-1 and Young leads the series in scoring (27.5 points per game) and assists (10.0).
Albert and Miller will both be inside MSG with TNT moving its broadcasters on site after being remote all season. Beginning in the second round, game commentators will be in the arena for every game, according to the network.
