Mike Breen reveals why he didn't use his iconic ‘bang' call during NBA Finals Game 1 winner
Many fans were left without something after Tyrese Haliburton's game-winning shot in Game 1 of the NBA Finals — commentator Mike Breen's signature 'bang' call.
Breen, who has been announcing the NBA Finals for 20 years, chose to forego the legendary call on Thursday, opting for the more generic — but still effective — 'It's good, it's good.'
The longtime NBA broadcaster explained his reasoning behind not going with the 'bang' call for the shot that gave the Pacers an early lead in the series.
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'We were so happy with such a fun game and a great comeback,' Breen told Sports Illustrated, 'and now there's obviously juice to the series and I liked the Haliburton call and then I find out later that I'm getting destroyed because I didn't say 'BANG!'
'I think in all these years I only said bang for a two-pointer once. It was a Kobe Bryant game-winner in the playoffs when he hit a shot against Phoenix, and it was the only time. That's the only time. I save it for threes.
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Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton shoots the game winning basket over Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace in the closing second of the second half of Game 1 of the NBA Finals Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Oklahoma City.
AP
'In hindsight, because of the magnitude of the shot, it certainly would've worked and made people happy, but I don't premeditate the call and it was such an unbelievable shot. If he was beyond the 3-point mark, I probably would've said 'BANG!''
Breen, the Knicks' play-by-play man on MSG Network, is known to be selective about the call, with the last one coming in May for Jalen Brunson's series-clinching shot against the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs.
Richard Jefferson, Dorris Burke and Mike Breen speaking before the Denver Nuggets against the Boston Celtics game on March 2, 2025 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
NBAE via Getty Images
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Brunson's shot, which gave the Knicks the win in Game 6, earned an even rarer double 'bang' call from Breen.
He previously explained to The Post after ex-Knick Donte DiVincenzo's clutch 3-pointer in the 2024 NBA playoffs what has to happen in order for a shot to receive the double 'bang.'
'Three or four specific things had to happen and they did, so when he hit that shot and the crowd went crazy, it just came out,' Breen said then. 'It's not something that was thought of, it just came out for such a spectacular play during this extraordinary sequence in such a huge playoff game.'
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