Does Tommy H go too far with his bias?

[nba is the worst]

No question he goes too far at times- which can be very funny when the replay proves him wrong, and Mike just says nothing...

[mmbaby]

Glad to have Tommy still. Yes, of course he's biased and that's his job. I love the way he tells it like it is (or how he sees it) and isn't afraid to call out the refs who are wrong.

[footey]

He does, and that is why I love him. He continues the legacy of Johnny Most, which is what made Most great. Tommy, like Most, understands the watching basketball as a fan, involves drama, which requires good guys and bad guys.  He knows what he is doing. Keep it up, Tommy. A million TP's for you, baby.

[chambers]

most basketball fans know when a call is wrong.
I've heard some biased commentators but he is up there with the worst.
He was a fantastic player but sometimes i question his basketball IQ. He goes on an on about insignificant factors and misses some critical stuff compared to someone like van gundy (who, love him or hate him- he knows what he's talking about).
It's so bad that the co announcer mike just bites his tongue and shakes his head.
He calls out the refs EVERY game- no matter how evenly they are calling it.
I have league pass and i know how biased other announcers are but as a celtics fan it's getting so annoying listening to every home game and his constant complaining over the most obvious and correct decisions against the celtics.
Just an observation.

[j804]

most basketball fans know when a call is wrong.
I've heard some biased commentators but he is up there with the worst.
He was a fantastic player but sometimes i question his basketball IQ. He goes on an on about insignificant factors and misses some critical stuff compared to someone like van gundy (who, love him or hate him- he knows what he's talking about).
It's so bad that the co announcer mike just bites his tongue and shakes his head.
He calls out the refs EVERY game- no matter how evenly they are calling it.
I have league pass and i know how biased other announcers are but as a celtics fan it's getting so annoying listening to every home game and his constant complaining over the most obvious and correct decisions against the celtics.
Just an observation.

No way. I love Tommy.

[mmbaby]

Tommy and Mike have been working together for 30 years as I understand it. I don't think Mike has any problem at all with Tommy. They go perfectly together.
Complaining about 'obvious' decisions against your team?
You lost me there.

[alley oop]

...He was a fantastic player but sometimes i question his basketball IQ...

He was also the Celtic's coach from 1969-78, compiling a record of 427–263 that included 2 championships.

[Boris Badenov]

The home broadcast audience is different from the national audience.

Tommy understands this too, of course. Many of us may not remember, but he used to do color on national telecasts, including several NBA Finals series during the 1980s in which the Celtics played. He was far more objective then.

[kenmaine]

Absolutely not.
I'm prejudiced- I love Tommy and the C's.
And he really does have great insight into the game, along with his Celtics bias.
And as for annoying?- I watched the national broadcast the other day with, I think Hubie and maybe Mike Tirico? I don't even know for sure who was announcing, but they WOULDN'T SHUT UP for one second. That's annoying!
When Tommy finally does retire, I hope we don't get some boring drone who's "unbiased".

[moiso]

Tommy and Mike have been working together for 30 years as I understand it. I don't think Mike has any problem at all with Tommy. They go perfectly together.
Complaining about 'obvious' decisions against your team?
You lost me there.

I think Mike realizes that Tommy is somewhat of a caricature of himself now.  He makes certain comments to Donnie that paint this picture.

[Chief]

I love Tommy and Mike. We have been very blessed fans for a long time. The only two close would be Lawler and Michael "The Next Larry Bird" Smith.

[Spilling Green Dye]

I think Tommy has lost a step, perhaps.  He seems to force his comments a bit more now, rather than letting things flow naturally.  However, I still love his commentary.  The games that Donnie does are terrible -- dull -- in comparison.

I'm not so sure its that he's lost a step, but more that he's been told to watch what he says.  It seems to me that he's been told to tone it down, etc.. and so he's kind of forced to say only positive things.  When you ask a color commentator to consistently watch what he says (and he never had to for 30 years prior) then its breaks up his continuity. 

[guava_wrench]

I think Tommy is a horrible announcer, but my opinion is not what matters. If enough fans like delusional color commentary, then the network/team might be wise to keep him.

In a way, his cluelessness helps the team. When the team messes up, his ridiculous ref blaming can fool fans into thinking it wasn't the team's fault. The team can get a free pass. Encouraging an "us against the league" narrative can only help team popularity among fans who are susceptible to that.

There is a reason why there is a mute button on the remote. Perfect compliment to Tommy yelling.

[mgent]

I can see how some people get annoyed by Tommy's occasional yelling, but calling him clueless, uninformed, or a bad announcer is just ignorant.  If anything Tommy is just emotional when it comes to his team of 55 years, are you surprised?  When I'm yelling at the television and getting out of my seat, it's actually nice to hear I'm not the only one.

If an emotional basketball fan for some reason bothers you, all you have to do is press mute and put on some music.  You don't have to go online and create a thread dissing a Celtic legend.  The guy is almost 80 years old, most of us will be lucky to even be functioning on our own at that age.

[guava_wrench]

I can see how some people get annoyed by Tommy's occasional yelling, but calling him clueless, uninformed, or a bad announcer is just ignorant.  If anything Tommy is just emotional when it comes to his team of 55 years, are you surprised?  When I'm yelling at the television and getting out of my seat, it's actually nice to hear I'm not the only one.

If an emotional basketball fan for some reason bothers you, all you have to do is press mute and put on some music.  You don't have to go online and create a thread dissing a Celtic legend.  The guy is almost 80 years old, most of us will be lucky to even be functioning on our own at that age.

No one has to do anything.

I stand by 'clueless' with regards to his frequent inability to see what actually happened on a play or even on a replay in favor of what he wants to be the case.

I actually think complaining is a good idea since that is one way to get him reassigned to a studio position, where he is still excellent. He is still competent when he has some distance from the action. He also gets really corny when really happy about the action. I usually give him a pass on that though.

I do frequently mute Tommy or I find an illegal stream of an away broadcast. There is a lot of relevant information that can be missed though when muting. Also following the play by play online can help, but the ideal is when our games are on TNT or ESPN and more professional colors guys are doing the game.

And no, I am not surprised (that he is a bad announcer).