In L.A., Bill Plaschke writes Clippers TV play-by-play announcer Ralph Lawler, "finally freed from the Donald Sterling stain," is "relishing his role as the treasured ancient relic in this new Clippers culture." Thousands of fans nationwide are embracing the "rollicking telecasts filled with equal parts wisecracks and wisdom" by Lawler and color analyst Michael Smith. Lawler said, "Sometimes I'll go to a game and a group of young kids will come over to me and be positively adoring, and that's hard to walk away from. It's nice to have people love you, it really is." Plaschke writes it is "this sort of love that could soon be visible on a national level as Lawler's name is expected to be involved in discussions that could end an injustice and finally land him" in the Naismith Memorial Basketball HOF (L.A. TIMES, 1/21).
WORTHY OF PRAISE: HBO's "Real Sports" last night profiled NBC's Cris Collinsworth, with host Mary Carillo noting Collinsworth's "job is to entertain and educate, to make a complicated game seem simple even if it means being blunt." Collinsworth said, "The hardest thing in broadcasting is you have to be critical of people you really like, and you have to say really nice things about people you really don't like." Carillo noted "it's a job he approaches with fanatical care," as he watches hours of film prepping for a "SNF" broadcast. Collinsworth's booth partner, Al Michaels, said, "He sees every part of it, and you can't tell me that coaches know any more than Cris Collinsworth does" ("Real Sports," HBO, 1/20).
STAYING CLASSY: In L.A., Chris Erskine writes Padres TV play-by-play announcer Dick Enberg "always has been a master storyteller and a sensitive guy, with the heart of a kid." He is "glib and literate," and there is "still a bit of an everyman to Enberg." The 80-year-old said, "I still think I have my fastball." Enberg is "one of the few announcers whose name can share the same sentence" with Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. This year, he will do about 140 Padres games, "in addition to his Cooperstown appearance in late July" (L.A. TIMES, 1/21).
NOTES: SiriusXM yesterday announced that PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua will host a new show, "State of the Game," which will debut Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 8:00pm ET and will air monthly. Bevacqua and co-host Brian Katrek will discuss the world of golf, focusing on the role that his organization and PGA professionals play in growing the game. They also will discuss the growth of the game globally (SiriusXM)....Cara Robinson has joined Golf Channel and will serve as a co-host for "Morning Drive." She is expected to start in late February and will continue to make occasional contributions to Sky Sports' weekly "Golfing World" show (Golf Channel)....The GLOBE & MAIL's Simon Houpt reports Dean Blundell, the "shock jock who was fired by Toronto radio station" CFNY-FM a year ago "after making comments deemed to be homophobic, will be the co-host" of a morning show on CJCL-AM, Rogers Communications’ flagship Toronto sports radio station. "Blundell & Co." will be "launching on March 2" and will "be heard nationally" (GLOBE & MAIL, 1/21).
