Did Stan Van Gundy clever ways to sidestep the potential announcer jinx during a tense moment in the game? In the closing moments of Thursday’s match between the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks—called by Van Gundy and his play-by-play partner, Brian Anderson—Milwaukee’s Damian Lillard was fouled while attempting a three-pointer right before halftime. As Lillard prepared to shoot his first free throw, Anderson shared a note from Van Gundy with the audience.
“Stan just slipped me a note that Damian Lillard has made 26 consecutive free throws,” Anderson said. To which Van Gundy humorously replied, “I actually didn’t know that. So it definitely was not coming from me. That must have been from Thom Barberi or yourself.” Anderson then added, “Just to properly assign the announcer jinx in case he misses.” It was almost a jinx scenario; Lillard’s first free throw precariously rattled around the rim before finally going in.
“Stan just slipped me a note, by the way, that Damian Lillard has made 26 consecutive free throws…just to properly assign the announcer jinx in case he misses.”
Damian Lillard made Brian Anderson and Stan Van Gundy sweat on the first one, but no announcer jinx. pic.twitter.com/MoAmLgF36e
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 24, 2025
Following Lillard’s free throws, things took a turn for the Bucks when Miami failed to inbound the ball properly, turning it over. This led Van Gundy to remark, “You can’t play the last 10 seconds of a quarter any worse than Miami has,” which became even more significant moments later. Milwaukee’s Taurean Prince inbounded the ball to Lillard, who then nailed a corner three-pointer just as time expired, giving the Bucks a more substantial lead at halftime.
“You can’t play the last 10 seconds of a quarter any worse than Miami has.”
Stan Van Gundy. https://t.co/qYh3cElsNK
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 24, 2025
Ultimately, what emerged was a reverse jinx for Anderson and Van Gundy, at least regarding the Bucks’ fortunes.
