Philadelphia 76ers analyst Alaa Abdelnaby wrote the New York Knicks off Monday night, but he did it about 47 seconds too soon.
Abdelnaby suffered one of the worst announcer jinxes in recent memory during the 76ers first round Game 2 matchup with the New York Knicks. In his defense, New York looked dead as they were down by five points with Sixers point guard Kyle Lowry on the free throw line and just 47 seconds left.
The critical Game Two sequences brought to you by the 76ers TV broadcast. pic.twitter.com/dvuofhvoO9
— DJ (@DJAceNBA) April 23, 2024
“The goal is getting home court advantage by winning 1 of the 2 games on the road,” Abdelnaby said on the NBC Sports Philadelphia broadcast. “Job done, let’s head down to the Turnpike.”
“Stay tuned, Post Game Live is gonna be fun,” play-by-play voice Kate Scott added even as the Knicks pushed the ball up the court after Lowry missed his second free throw.
About 30 seconds later, the Knicks held a one-point lead. 13 seconds after that, the Knicks were Game 2 winners, taking a 2-0 series lead over the 76ers to Philadelphia. Abdelnaby made no mention of previously writing the Knicks off as they secured the win. But surely, Post Game Live was no longer going to be fun.
Abdelnaby and Scott weren’t alone. No one watching that game felt the Knicks were going to come back and win with 47 seconds to go. I certainly had no faith that the Knicks were going to win, but as someone who still has Reggie Miller’s eight points in nine seconds as an early fandom memory, I at least knew it was possible. And as an analyst, you can’t be jumping to “job done” in that spot.
“No quit, all grit, close knit” is the mantra the Knicks are attempting to rally behind in these NBA playoffs. Down by five points with 47 seconds to go, fans may have counted them out, the opposing broadcasters definitely counted them out, but the Knicks never quit.
