ESPN commentator Doris Burke has been heavily criticized on social media for her analysis during Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Burke was behind the mic as the Oklahoma City Thunder managed to claim the franchise’s second-ever championship with a 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
She made up a three-person team in the booth alongside Mike Breen and Richard Jefferson.
But fans quickly took to social media to vent their frustrations at her performance throughout the contest.
One posted: ‘When you’re sad the NBA season is over but then realize you don’t have to hear Richard Jefferson and Doris Burke ever again.’
Another commented: ‘Can we all just agree Doris Burke should never call another finals? I am so tired of it.’
ESPN’s Doris Burke has been slammed on social media for her analysis of the NBA Finals
A third posted: ‘Doris Burke is hands down the worst announcer in NBA history. Her voice ruins the Finals.
‘It’s Game 7, and we’re stuck listening to a WNBA highlight reel in disguise. This isn’t equality, it’s punishment. Do better @ESPN’.
‘Doris Burke and Richard Jefferson are the 2 worst commentators in sports history,’ added another.
The criticism kept coming, with another viewer added: ‘Why does Doris Burke get airtime? Whatever opinion or take she has, she is always wrong. Not to mention her abhorrent voice and baseless confidence!
It comes after reports emerged earlier this month that ESPN’s top NBA broadcast booth could be reshuffled after just one season.
According to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, Burke is not guaranteed to be back with ESPN’s top trio of announcers, while Jefferson has drawn some interest from Amazon Prime as the streaming giant gains domestic NBA media rights next season.
Another change atop the ESPN depth chart would result in the third different grouping in as many seasons.
Until 2024, the cable giant had featured the popular trio of play-by-play announcer Mike Breen, ex-coach Jeff Van Gundy and former player and coach Mark Jackson.
But while Marchand reports that ESPN didn’t order Van Gundy and Jackson’s firings, he does say it was ‘well known’ the league was upset about the former’s frequent criticism.
ESPN replaced the two with Doc Rivers and JJ Redick, who went on to take coaching positions with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers, respectively.
Enter Jefferson, a popular former player, and Burke, who had been on ESPN’s No. 2 pairing with long-time play-by-play announcer Mark Jones.
