NBC’s throwback game was a winner, despite a miserable Sixers loss

The Sixers’ miserable loss to Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday night was forgettable, but NBC’s throwback broadcast was something to remember.

From the retro opening to the “Roundball Rock” theme to the 1990s-style graphics, everything NBC put together was pitch perfect. Even the retro scorebug captured the feel of NBC’s heyday covering the league in the 1990s and early 2000s, though back then the network didn’t keep the score on the screen out of fear of driving viewers away during blowouts like Tuesday night.

In their first season broadcasting NBA games since 2002, NBC assembled a who’s who of former talent for Tuesday’s broadcast. Bob Costas, calling his first NBA game in 24 years, ably weaved back and forth from nostalgia to the action on the court, at least until the Spurs put the game out of reach in the third quarter.

“It’s been nothing but pain for the Sixers tonight,” Costas said alongside longtime NBA analysts and former coaches Mike Fratello and Doug Collins.

Costas also managed to squeeze the line “Two great Dicks” into the broadcast, referencing famed sportscaster Dick Enberg and former NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol.

“Two great Richards,” Costas jokingly added.

Initially, NBC planned to bring back Marv Albert, but the iconic NBA announcer had some health issues related to his voice and was unable to participate.

Former NBC host and reporter Ahmad Rashad (who once played a preseason game for the Sixers alongside Charles Barkley) also wasn’t part of the broadcast. It’s not clear why Rashad wasn’t in South Philly alongside his former colleagues Tuesday night, but Costas gave him a special shoutout during the broadcast.

“One of my favorite people I ever worked with in any sport,” Costas said. “Great company, terrific sense of humor. A lifelong friend.”

The connections past and present were everywhere. Sixers point guard Kyle Lowry, among the few players on the court old enough to have watched the NBA in the 1990s, was drafted by NBC analyst Mike Fratello when he was still head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2006.

Heading into halftime, Spurs point guard Dylan Harper was interviewed by longtime NBC reporter Jim Gray, who interviewed Harper’s father, five-time NBA champion Ron Harper, many times over the years.

“It really is Throwback Tuesday now,” Costas joked during the broadcast. “We’re now talking to the sons of guys we covered.”

As far as the nuts and bolts of the broadcast, Collins was on top of things all night. In the first quarter, the former Sixers player and head coach quickly pointed out after a Wembanyama block it was the 24th game this season he’s had at least three blocks, which leads the NBA.

Later in the first half, when Costas mentioned the Thunder as one of the few teams who might challenge the Spurs in the playoffs, Collins quickly noted San Antonio won four of their five games against Oklahoma City this season.

During the second half, with the game well out of reach for the Sixers, Collins recalled back to his own coaching days trying to get thrown out of a game he could no longer watch.

“One of the old-time referees ran by the bench, stopped me, and said, ‘Listen, I know what your doing. You’re trying to get thrown out. You’re going to stay here and watch the same crap I’m watching,’” Collins recalled. “I couldn’t even get thrown out!”

As Sports Media Watch’s Jon Lewis noted, Collins sounded like “not a moment has passed since he last called games for ESPN years ago.”

In recent years, Collins divides his time between homes in Arizona and West Chester, where he’s able to watch his grandchildren play basketball. Collins said he’d love to come back and call more games, but some health issues with his feet and legs have held him back.

“It’s hard for me to travel,” Collins told The Inquirer before the game. “Otherwise, I’d still be working.”

Interestingly, a lot of Sixers fans probably missed NBC’s throwback coverage, since NBC Sports Philadelphia’s broadcast was a strictly 21st century production featuring regular announcers Kate Scott and Alaa Abdelnaby. Although, most viewers probably changed the channel by the third quarter anyway.

Scott and Abdelnaby will be back Wednesday night to call the Sixers host the Utah Jazz at 7:30 p.m. on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Eastern Conference