Kevin Harlan credits James Bond scene for iconic commentary of LeBron James' dunk on Kevin Garnett
On Tuesday, television sports announcer Kevin Harlan, in the NBA's Reddit forum, responded to a variety of fan questions. He reacted to numerous inquiries about his memorable commentary in the NBA, including a famous call of LeBron James' dunk over Kevin Garnett. Harlan opened up on his initial reaction to the dunk and credited a James Bond scene for his iconic commentary.
During his interaction with fans on Reddit, one user questioned the 64-year-old about a call made during the 2008 Eastern Conference semifinals. Re-enacting the commentary, the fan questioned Harlan:
"LeBron James with no regard for human life! Can you do it again? lol seriously, what's your most memorable game to call?"
The Wisconsin native reverted to the question by explaining his initial thoughts on the dunk, before crediting the iconic line to a James Bond scene:
"WITH NO REGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE! LeBron had that dunk over Kevin Garnett when he snaked his way by some players to get to the rim, and he hammered it over the reigning defensive player of the year. You could almost feel the fans breathing on the back of your neck," he recalled.
"James Bond (Sean Connery) is sitting at the dining table of the villain, in an underwater lair. The villain is talking about his plans to master the world, and Bond's response to him is "well that's genius, you clearly have no regard for human life"," he said "That line is in my head from the James Bond movie," he continued.
The dunk in question occurred during a back-and-forth series between the Boston Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Led by a young LeBron James, the Cavs were fighting to even the series in Game 4 when the King dunked on the Big Ticket, earning a legendary call from Harlan in the process. Boston eventually won the series in Game 7 and went on to win the NBA title that year.
Kevin Harlan opens up on how he records his commentary for the NBA 2K games in detail
During the Q&A session with fans on Reddit, Kevin Harlan was questioned on various topics surrounding his commentary journey in the NBA.
One fan in particular was intrigued by his commentary on the NBA 2K games, as he questioned the announcer about how he recorded them:
"Hi Kevin, can you tell us how you guys record on NBA 2K. Do you make those on the fly or you have a script? How do you go about all the names? Those kind of stuff. Thank you," the fan wrote.
Harlan responded to this query by opening up about the recording process in detail:
"This is my 20th year doing it," he revealed. "It has evolved from me having to go out to San Francisco for a week at a time multiple times to record, to now being able to set up two separate recording facilities in my home in Wisconsin and Kansas City so I can record in both places," he continued.
Kevin Harlan's voice has become closely associated with the NBA 2K games.
The former University of Kentucky alumnus continues to deliver insightful commentary, both during live games and in the video game itself. His contributions enhance the realism of the gaming experience.