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NBA Finals: ABC analyst Jeff Van Gundy caught in the middle
Analyst Jeff Van Gundy said he considered bowing out of calling the NBA Finals for ABC because he’s rooting for the Orlando Magic, coached by his brother, Stan Van Gundy, to win the finals.
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"I’m not, like, good at it. I’m just part of a really good team. Mike and Mark totally cover up all my weaknesses.”
Jeff Van Gundy
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ABC producers told Jeff they wanted him to continue because they were confident he can still do a professional job and they would clearly note his ties to his brother. Analyst Mark Jackson, who joins play-by-play man Mike Breen on ABC’s top broadcast team, told Jeff Van Gundy that he normally isn’t too critical of coaches anyway, so it wouldn’t be much different if he didn’t criticize his brother.
"If they (the Magic) are fortunate to win the championship, I may have my bottle of champagne I pour over myself and Mark and Mike,” Van Gundy said. "I definitely want them to win, no doubt, but during the games, I’m going to try to be as objective as possible.”
However, dousing his broadcast partners with champagne — at least in public — certainly would be going overboard and likely would earn him a network reprimand.
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