Neil Funk

Sam Smith

It actually all did start at a 1,000 watt radio station in Danville, Illinois, WITY, the voice of Illiana.

Neil Eugene Funk, fresh out of Syracuse University by way of the University of Illinois and Gettysburg College, signed on as an ad salesman who helped out with the station's broadcasts of high school, U of Illinois and Class A baseball broadcasts. Then starting in 1976 with the Philadelphia 76ers, Funk was the play by play voice variously on radio and television for the 76ers, Kansas City Kings, New Jersey Nets and Bulls for 43 consecutive seasons. That suddenly came to an end in March with the NBA's stoppage due to the corona virus and then the Bulls elimination from the expected Orlando conclusion to the 2019-20 NBA season.

Marv Albert, Basketball Hall of Fame 1997, NBA voice of Turner Broadcasting and NFL.

"It's a shame Neil can't finish this season knowing it was to be his last game. He is one of those NBA old school broadcasters. He captured the game so well, I thought, be it TV or radio. Not that many broadcasters these days have done both. I think it's important to do radio before television and then understand you have to pull it back for television. His radio calls during the Michael Jordan era, I thought, were iconic. As I know personally, there was a lot of material there and I always felt he had a terrific sense of humor on and off the air and for me doing so many Bulls game he always was great in sharing information to visiting broadcasters. I always enjoyed his company."

The first of the Baby Boom generation born shortly after the end of World War II, Neil grew up in Indianapolis with two sisters. HIs father was in sales for the community leader, Eli Lilly, and Neil went on to be one of the city's top athletes at Park Tudor High School, all-city in basketball, quarterback of the football team and pitching for the baseball team. Who knew, eh?

Mike Breen, Basketball Hall of Fame 2020, NBA voice for ABC/ESPN and the New York Knicks.

"The thing about Neil is he really has no idea how big a deal he is. He has such humility about him. Any time you tried to tell him how great he was and how much he meant, he didn't want to hear it. He was not interested in hearing the admiration and plaudits. He'll hate this, by the way, people saying nice things about him.

"He's unquestionably one of the true signature voices and true characters in the history of the league. What I love most about Neil from the standpoint of a listener and NBA fan is how much he absolutely loved the game and wanted so much to see it played the right way and played to its best potential. He was annoyed when it wasn't played well. He was annoyed when he felt the proper effort or execution wasn't done. When it was done the right way it was so beautiful to him and that came across in the way he broadcast games. That's why I used to love when the Bulls were playing well and not just the Jordan years. It could be any year. He had such joy in his voice because it was being played at that level. As a man, you won't find a more standup guy. He just wanted to call the games of the sport he loved and go home; he wasn't interested in the spotlight at all.

I knew him before I started broadcasting NBA games. I was the producer for WNBC radio in New York. This is before all-sports talk. We had a half hour lead in to the sports show and it was an update on all the teams and he was doing the Nets at the time. My job as producer Monday through Friday was to do a 45 to 60-second New Jersey Nets report. We had one for the Mets, Jets, Giants; every New York team. So I got to know Neil just by his voice and I couldn't wait for the phone call because he'd always say something funny and then he'd always do it in one take. Everybody else it would take several takes. He would do it once and it was so easy and effortless. It struck me as young broadcaster how effortless he made it, didn't try hard but was so knowledgeable. We're all guilty of trying to make an impression and do something special on the air; he just called the game. It was like he was born to be a play by play guy of an NBA team. I am going to miss him so much. My only worry was when he switched from radio to TV he continued to wear makeup even on the off days."

After five years in Danville and developing a lifelong friendship with some of the Illini greats like Jim Grabowski, Neil decided to venture out and sent tapes. He got a call from Rudy Martzke, the public relations guy for the new Spirits of St. Louis of the ABA. Neil went to St. Louis giant KMOX for an interview, but lost out to a young kid from Syracuse, Bob Costas.

Bob Costas, Basketball Hall of Fame 1999, MLB Network and formerly NBC, the Olympics and HBO.

"I did get that Spirits job, but I was also 22, single and more than willing to work for $11,000 a year; that may have factored into the decision. I'd say, no pun intended, Neil rebounded nicely. For many of us closure or tying a ribbon around things is important; otherwise it feels like you left something undone. It's a feeling all of us can understand and emphasize with. You put so much of your life into something and you want the final chapter to be consistent with the chapters which preceded. Neil has such a long and impressive NBA resume with an amazing career. For more than 40 years is remarkable. He was with really great 76ers and Bulls teams and is part of those stories, becoming part of such wonderful fans' memories of those great seasons and great moments."

Neil landed the 76ers job and there was no rookie wall as he rode into the Finals with Doc, McGinnis, Dawkins and Doug Collins.

Bill Schonely, Basketball Hall of Fame 2012, Rip City originator and Trailblazers announcer from 1970 through 1998.

"Before those Finals games we'd get together and it was, ‘We're going to get you tonight.' Neil was always such fun and an outstanding broadcaster. And then he'd do his job like the great pro he was. He was so highly regarded in the NBA broadcast family."

Philadelphia, even for the kid from the Midwest, was the break of a lifetime. Neil always said just being hired by the 76ers was the highlight of his two stays there over several seasons in the 1970s and 1980s. He wasn't one of the hot kids from Syracuse's famed S.I. Newhouse school that produced so many notable broadcast journalists. Had some other interests that academics got in the way of. He'd made the basketball team as a walk-on, though practicing against Dave Bing was his walkup call for another profession. He stuck around a year, tried basketball at Gettysburg and then came back to Syracuse to finish up less in broadcast journalism than university fun. After Danville, Neil believed it might be a career in broadcast on the high school and college circuit. And then in the NBA of all places.

Al McCoy, Basketball Hall of Fame, 2007 and voice of the Phoenix Suns for the last 48 seasons.

"I kind of say jokingly he came out of Syracuse, so he has to be respected. Neil just knows so many people in the NBA, but he never tried to be the show. Just part of the group and I'm proud he and I developed such a great friendship and it has continued. I met him when he started in Kansas City. He was good no matter what, radio or TV. The thing I most liked about Neil's approach to his broadcasts, he always had fun doing the games. He had some great analysts who worked with him, especially Red, Johnny Kerr. I liked that every game wasn't do or die or the end of the world; it was reporting the game. And having a little fun at the same time. He treated it as a professional, obviously, because he was a professional. That's also why I think the fans adopted him all along no matter what team he was with."

After one season with the 76ers, Neil's station changed formats and gave up the basketball team's rights, though he was still doing sports reports in the summer. One of the 76ers former owners was a fan and Neil got a broadcast tryout with the Kansas City Kings, the old Rochester and Cincinnati Royals who came to Kansas City in 1972. He got the NBA job for the 1977-78 season.

Bill Raftery, Basketball Hall of Fame 2006, Seton Hall coach and CBS college basketball.

"I got to know Funky during those Philly years because he also was close with Chuck (Daly) and Billy (Cunningham). He was very open with the coaches because of his passion for the game, almost to the point you'd think. ‘Did he get away with that?' I remember one time Cotton Fitzsimmons in Kansas City does something strange in the last minute and Funky gets on the team bus and says something like, ‘What were you thinking about in that last timeout?' Cotton says to get off the bus. Cotton made him walk back to the hotel. He was so great with the jibes, but with a twinkle in his eye. At very difficult moments he'd make people laugh. He could bring you down to earth pretty good, but was always so much fun to be around. Great sense of humor, great kidder, but never in a mean way. When he'd come into town we'd always have him come to dinner with the family. He's that kind of guy."

Neil broadcast Kings game through the 1981-82 season, building longtime relationships with coaches like Frank Hamblein, who went on to join Phil Jackson's staff with the Bulls. Coming from Philadelphia and the Finals after one season to Kansas City, Neil even was told by management he'd be the big fish this time in the small pond even just past 30 years old. It was where Neil tried out his kakakaboom call and developed and refined the style that has become familiar to NBA fans the last 40 years. When Neil's name is mentioned, Ray Ridder, the tireless Warriors media executive, is prone to lapse into childhood memories. "I grew up in Wichita, Kansas when he was the voice of the Kansas City Kings," says Ray. "Loved listening to him with Sam Lacey, Scott Wedman, Phil Ford, Bill Robinzine and Cotton Fitzsimmons. Great fun. What memories."

Tim Roye, Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings broadcast since 1989.

"I remember Neil from Kansas City when Julie Fie was doing pr and trainer Bill Jones was an original and Neil was always bringing you into the group. He had the reputation of being one of the best announcers in the league, but I always got the impression he took his work very seriously but didn't take himself very seriously. Didn't talk about it or himself. Not a look-at-me guy. He was a model for me. I first got to the league with Sacramento in '89 doing pre and post and when Gary Gerould would do ABC, I'd get to do play by play. Neil, he didn't know me from Adam. Couldn't pick me out of a police lineup, not that I was in one. But he'd make me feel so welcome, always coming to say hi and how are you doing, talking to me and asking me about the team. Treated me as one of the guys even though I probably didn't deserve it at that point. The other thing was radio or TV, you listen to Neil and he's at the top of the game. Knew the personnel of the other team, knew the league, what other teams' guys could do and not do, what their strengths and weaknesses were. I always felt that when I was on the road in the NBA and could listen or watch in my hotel room, I always tuned in a broadcast Neil was doing and I was going to learn something. I was going to take away something from that game I didn't know or appreciate. He was so good at it and seamless the way he could weave in knowledge about the game and the other team and have it fit right in the broadcast."

Neil had remained friends and golfing partners with Cunningham, who tipped off Neil to an opening with the 76ers, and Neil returned for his first championship with Cunningham's 1983 76ers with Doc, Moses and one of the NBA's most dominant and colorful teams.

Doug Collins, Basketball Hall of Fame 2009 and longtime NBA coach and NBC broadcaster

"After I got injured and couldn't play there was a clause in my contract that they could use me as a general manager or a broadcaster or liaison in the community. It started out I was doing some radio and the TV situation opened up and I had a chance to work with Neil in the early 80s. I had such a wonderful time with him. There are two things when I broadcast a game: There is the respect for the game and the person I am working with, I want them to have the passion that they love the game. Neil Funk hits a home run in both of those areas. He loves the game and he absolutely has an incredible passion for it, does his homework, knows when to be ready for the big moments, when to lay out, when to engage his partner. It's easy sometimes for a play-by-play guy to start doing a lot of analysis. A lot of the guys I worked with, the hall of famers, they lob you up that softball and say, ‘Knock it out of the park, tell us what's going on.' That's Neil. Neil is about all those things and we're going to miss him because we as sports fans get connected to voices who are synonymous with championships. They are the connection between fans and the game and Neil is one of those guys."

Those 76ers teams of the late 70s and early 1980s were among the elite of a time many believe was the strongest in league history. The 76ers were in the Finals four times in seven seasons between 1977 and 1983. And even though 1983 was their last title, in the next three seasons they averaged 55 wins with a conference finals defeat in the great NBA Eastern Conference era with the champion Celtics, the emerging Pistons and the developing Bulls and Cavs. Neil actually had tried both the Bulls and Cavs in the 70s, but with Joe Tait in Cleveland and Jim Durham in Chicago, the way was blocked. Philadelphia was a career saver and career starter and ideal preparation for the great Bulls run of the 1990s.

Hubie Brown, Basketball Hall of Fame 2000, longtime ABA and NBA coach and ABC and ESPN analyst

"I met Neil at a good time in my career. I was transferring over from being an NBA coach. I did one year of national TV for USA in the '81-'82 season, but then in between coaching Atlanta and then New York I did occasional work for CBS in the playoffs in the 80s. When I finished coaching in '87, I wanted to really dive into radio and TV work and see if I could break in, learn how to do it. That's when I ran into Neil Funk. He was very instrumental in allowing me to develop a style when I worked with him. He's very generous as an announcer, very well prepared. He knows his subject matter. And now in me he has a new partner to work with. Whenever you do television, especially the NBA, you only have five to eight seconds after a basket is made after he gives you the score before you give it back to him to come in and be able to teach or break things down or make a good suggestion because you're really at the mercy of the announcer. So you have to bond with him. And I had a very, very enjoyable time period doing games with Neil because of the friendship on and off the court. But then it would come across on the broadcast because he has that ability that he can step aside, allow you to develop a style. For me at that time, I was working a number of different places and working with different people and you find out they all have a rhythm and their rhythm is not the same. You want to do good television and there has to be a rhythm between that announcer and the analyst. Working with Neil was a joy and we've always remained friends all these years. I was lucky because not all announcers give you the space to be able to make a contribution. People don't understand sometimes the combination doesn't work. He's an excellent professional and I know anyone who works with him had a chance to develop a style and felt comfortable no matter how big the game."

But sometimes even the ideal situation doesn't seem like it. You find out the grass on the other side rarely is greener, as it were. There were issues with the 76ers station and the Nets were calling. Neil knows he should have known better. Veteran broadcasters and friends Tait and Mel Proctor preceded Neil in New Jersey, and each was gone after one year. It should have served warning enough. Biggest mistake I ever made, Neil often said about those two seasons with the Nets in which he never did leave Philadelphia, commuting north on the turnpike for games. Lew Schaffel had persuaded Neil to give a voice to the lowly franchise. But Schaffel was soon gone, joining with Cunningham to start the Miami franchise with Ted Arison. So Neil rode out the two seasons in the Meadowlands.

Ian Eagle, Nets play by play since 1994 along with NCAA and NFL broadcasts.

"I started calling Nets games in 1994 and Neil's reputation was already incredibly impressive around the league. What always struck me about Neil was he doesn't sound like everyone else. He has his own sound. That's not easy to do in what is an oversaturated business. Plus his ability to switch from radio to TV is a very underrated aspect of our business. Usually something suffers when you make the move, but he always had the right approach on either medium. Personally, for me, he was always encouraging. You break into the league at 25, you look up to the guys who have staying power. Neil was a veteran when I started. I'm now 26 years in and he's been at this high level for so long."

So Neil goes into the Nets office to see Schaffel and is told he'd left the organization. Who should he see, then? The secretary said to try Larry Doby, the great former Major League Baseball player and first black player in the American League who was doing community liaison then for the Nets.

George Blaha, Detroit Pistons play by play since 1976.

"One thing you've got to love about Neil, he was always non plussed about himself and his career. As good as he was and I should say as great as he was, he never thought he was or let you think he felt all that full of himself; not that kind of guy. Never thought of himself as the king of the hill. But if you listen to him night after night, there wasn't anyone any better. This guy was an excellent play-by-play broadcaster and I hope the people in Chicago understand what they are losing as he retires. He deserves the chance to enjoy the golf, enjoy the family, the travel. He achieved way before the rest of us did and he never acted like he was already there. And you could hear it in the Last Dance, the way he was able to rise to the occasion. He was an every day, rock solid, don't ever lose your enthusiasm, let the game speak for itself kind of guy. And when big things happened he came up big."

Two months into his Nets tenure, 76ers owner Harold Katz called. Could Neil return? He'd signed a two-year deal. Katz asked he not resign and Neil eventually returned to the 76ers.

Mark Boyle, Indiana Pacers play by play since 1988

"Neil is one of those guys I always looked forward to seeing because he's the same no matter what. His moods at least in terms of our interactions were never infused by how good or bad his team was. He was a guy I looked up to in the early years of my time in the NBA because he was a guy I could look at and talk to and observe and see how he did things. Whenever you have older guys like that you can learn from it's great and he was always willing to talk and chat and I found him to be a really good source on that level. If you went around the league and asked his peer group you'd have a real hard time finding anyone who said anything negative about Neil. My first year was '88. When you're the new guy and I was young, in my 20s, and all the guys were older than me and more experienced at the NBA level and it can be really intimidating. But Neil was one of the guys I met early and we became good friends. It's hard for some people to understand, but I never see the guy other than at arenas. But it's like you just saw him last week. He's the kind of guy you always looked forward to seeing when you came to the arena. I always looked forward to speaking with Neil because he had a real good handle on reality and nothing really ever bothered him and you could talk to him about anything. He was a valuable, experienced hand early when I was trying to learn the ropes. Then he just became a friend."

Neil had gotten to know Jim Durham well. Durham finally broke through with the Bulls, there for the unsteady climb with the team from 1973 and through the first championship in 1991. Then the future Hall of Famer had a contract dispute with the Bulls. Durham eventually moved on to ESPN for NBA games and recommended Neil to the Bulls, Neil coming back to the Midwest for the Bulls radio play by play with Tom Dore and Kerr on TV. It would become, as Neil often said, who he was, a Chicago Bull, that after all the years of traveling and uncertainty with wife Renee they could settle down for a lifetime of professional enjoyment and personal relationships.

Joel Meyers, New Orleans Pelicans play by play with previous stints with the Lakers and Spurs.

"You know the old adage never say never? I can use the word never when it comes to Neil Funk. No one would even say anything negative about Neil because he was always that good a person. That's universal around the league. He was viewed as honest with natural enthusiasm and what always stood out on his telecasts was his chemistry with his partners no matter who. And he worked with so many. But he and Stacey are so good together. You can tell there's a genuine relationship. They care about one another and that comes across on the air. It makes for a good telecast. It was really fortunate for the city to have that team."

Stacey King, Bulls analyst with Neil Funk for 13 years.

"I tried to get him, like Hawk Harrelson did his last year, to stay and at least do just all the home games. I knew Neil as a player; always liked Neil. He was funny, like one of the guys but older, not a typical media guy. He was like one of the guys, so the transition working with him full-time was easy when Johnny retired and they decided to make one team. Great sense of humor, great knowledge of the game, like a basketball library. He's always been there for anything I needed. Neil's the type of person who makes it easier for you as a broadcaster to do your job. It's like you're with your best friend talking about a game and sitting and watching and having a beer and a steak; that's what it feels like every night when I go to work. Like I'm at a bar and grill with Neil Funk and we're just having fun.

"The biggest thing for me is he's allowed me to be myself even more. He's allowed me to grow into who I am and never held me back, never said don't do this, don't do that. He's always encouraged me to keep my personality, which I appreciate. People think I'm the funny guy. Neil's the funny guy. Neil plays a great straight guy. In a great comedy series you have to have a mixture of both for that comedy to go longer than three years. I'd say if he wanted to do five or 10 years more he could easily. I'll miss him. The last few years I've been getting used to other people, but I always knew Neil was coming back. Now it's sinking in he's not coming back and I feel there's a void, a piece missing with him not going to be there. Neil's voice is one of the last great NBA voices, the Johnny Most, Chick Hearn originals. Those guys had signature voices. Not so much signature calls, but the way they delivered the game with that voice. You don't hear a lot of people with those unique voices. So many sound pretty much the same.

"I'll always be in debt to him. He's made this job so easy for me. I've been so blessed to be in the same organization I was drafted in and work here and call the games fair and honest, and blessed also to be with a guy who I consider a Hall of Famer. It never felt like a job with Neil. I couldn't wait to do the games. Even when the Bulls have not had success like the last few years coming after the Derrick years when we had a lot of success. You can find yourself dreading to go to work because the team is not performing the way they should be. I never felt that way. Once those lights came on it was energy every night thanks to Neil."

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Ka-Boom! An oral history on the career of Bulls broadcasting great Neil Funk

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As Neil Funk enters his 28th year announcing Bulls basketball, there will be a slight variation to his continued play-by-play prowess as he will be cutting back 20 regular season road games from his announcing schedule during the regular season. He will call all pre-season and home games.

This season marks Funk’s 47th year in broadcasting.

Remarking on that decision, Funk said, “I’m thrilled to be back for another year calling Bulls games. The Bulls are such a terrific organization both on and off the court. I want to thank both Jerry and Michael Reinsdorf for their understanding and for allowing me to take a small step back in my broadcasting schedule after all these years.”

“Neil has established an impressive NBA broadcasting career spanning almost five decades,” said Michael Reinsdorf, President and COO. “We appreciate everything Neil does - he’s a pro’s pro who brings a wealth of basketball knowledge to every game. When he came to us with this request, it was an easy call – after more than 40 years, he has more than earned a few games off and we hope he and Renee enjoy their well-deserved breaks during the season.”

For those games that Neil is absent from his television play-by-play role this year, the Bulls plan is to slot in various play-by-play announcers alongside Bulls TV analyst Stacey King. Those exact plans have yet to be finalized at this date.

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After almost five decades, long-time Bulls announcer Neil Funk to cut back 20 games in 2018-19

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