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Kevin Robert Harlan is an American television and radio sports announcer. He has been broadcasting since his teens, when he called play-by-play for his high school's basketball, football, and ice hockey teams. Harlan has since become a prominent announcer, having called NFL games for over 40 consecutive seasons and NBA games for nearly 30 years. He has also called college basketball games for CBS and the NBA on TNT. In addition, Harlan has been the voice of the NBA's 2K video game series since 2006.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Kevin Robert Harlan |
| Profession | Sports announcer |
| Sports | Basketball, Football, Ice Hockey, Boxing |
| Specialization | Play-by-play |
| Networks | CBS, TNT, Westwood One, NBC, ESPN, Fox, Turner Sports, Amazon Prime Video |
| Teams | Kansas City Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, Kansas City Chiefs, Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears |
| Awards | National Sportscaster of the Year (2017, 2019) |
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What You'll Learn
- Kevin Harlan's basketball commentating career began at his alma mater, the University of Kansas
- Harlan has commentated on the NBA for nearly three decades, mainly for TNT
- He has also called play-by-play for CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
- Harlan was the voice of Westwood One Radio's Final Four coverage of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament until 2008
- He has called NFL and college basketball games for CBS and the NBA for TNT
Kevin Harlan's basketball commentating career began at his alma mater, the University of Kansas
Kevin Harlan is an American television and radio sports announcer, and a three-time National Sportscaster of the Year. He broadcasts NFL and college basketball games on CBS and the NBA on TNT.
Harlan's broadcasting career began at Our Lady of Premontre High School, where he called play-by-play for the school's basketball, football, and ice hockey teams. After graduating from the University of Kansas in 1982, he landed a job with the NBA's Kansas City Kings (now the Sacramento Kings) as their radio play-by-play announcer.
During his time at the University of Kansas, Harlan served as a basketball announcer for his alma mater for one year. He also worked with the University of Missouri from 1986 to 1989, calling football and basketball games.
Harlan's career progressed quickly, and he soon became the radio voice of the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs from 1985 to 1993. He continued to build his resume, working with various networks and sports leagues, including NBC, ESPN, Fox, and Turner Sports.
Today, Harlan is a well-renowned sports broadcaster, having called play-by-play for CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and the NBA on TNT. He is currently in his ninth season as the full-time voice of Monday Night Football on Westwood One.
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Harlan has commentated on the NBA for nearly three decades, mainly for TNT
Kevin Harlan is an American television and radio sports announcer. He has been broadcasting since his teens, initially for his high school radio station, WGBP-FM, where he called play-by-play for the boys' basketball, football, and ice hockey teams. He has since become one of the most well-known sports broadcasters in the US, with a career spanning almost four decades.
Harlan's career in sports broadcasting began in 1982 when he became the TV and radio voice of the NBA's Kansas City Kings (now the Sacramento Kings) at the age of 22. He went on to call games for the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs from 1985 to 1993 and was the voice of the Minnesota Timberwolves for nine seasons. He has also worked with several other networks, including NBC, ESPN, and Fox Sports.
In addition to his extensive experience in basketball and football broadcasting, Harlan has also called college basketball games on CBS and is the lead NFL radio voice nationally for Westwood One. He has broadcast more than 500 NFL games on network TV and is one of only three broadcasters to have more than 3,000 career national TV network broadcasts of the four major professional sports.
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He has also called play-by-play for CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
Kevin Harlan is a well-renowned American television and radio sports announcer. He has been voted National Sportscaster of the Year three times by his peers. He has been working in the field of sports broadcasting since his teenage years.
Harlan joined CBS Sports in 1998 as an NFL play-by-play announcer. He has been calling play-by-play for CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. In 1999, he worked on his first NCAA Tournament for CBS, where he was assigned first and second-round games in the West Region, played in Seattle.
In 2023, during the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, Harlan was on the call along with Dan Bonner and Stan Van Gundy when #13 Furman scored a go-ahead 3-pointer over #4 Virginia in the Round of 64 with 2.2 seconds to go. This was due to a rogue pass from Virginia's Kihei Clark to Furman's Garrett Hien.
Harlan has a history of injecting humour into situations during games and dramatizing mundane moments not related to the game itself.
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Harlan was the voice of Westwood One Radio's Final Four coverage of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament until 2008
Kevin Robert Harlan is an American television and radio sports announcer, and a three-time National Sportscaster of the Year. He is the son of former Green Bay Packers President and CEO, Bob Harlan. Harlan has been broadcasting since his teens, initially for his high school radio station, WGBP-FM, where he called play-by-play for the school's boys' basketball, football, and ice hockey teams.
Harlan has had an extensive career in sports broadcasting, including calling NFL games for NBC, college football for ESPN, and college basketball and championship boxing for the Mutual Broadcasting System. He has also been the voice of the NBA's "2K" video game series since 2006.
In addition to his work with Westwood One, Harlan has also been a part of CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship since 1999. He called the NCAA Final Four and Championship game for CBS Radio Network and Westwood One for five consecutive years (2003-2007). He has also been a play-by-play announcer for CBS Sports' coverage of both the NFL and NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Harlan's energetic and expressive commentary style has made him a well-known figure in sports broadcasting. He is recognized for his ability to capture the excitement of pivotal moments in a game, such as LeBron James' "vicious dunk" during an NBA playoff game in 2008, which led Harlan to exclaim, "LeBron James with no regard for human life!"
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He has called NFL and college basketball games for CBS and the NBA for TNT
Kevin Harlan is an American television and radio sports announcer, and a three-time National Sportscaster of the Year. He broadcasts NFL and college basketball games on CBS and the NBA on TNT.
Harlan joined the CBS Television Network's NFL broadcast team as a play-by-play announcer in 1998, after four years of broadcasting the NFL on Fox Sports. He has called CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship since 1999. He also called the NCAA Final Four and Championship game for CBS Radio Network and Westwood One for five consecutive years (2003-07), as well as the regionals (2009, 2010, 2011).
Harlan has also been the voice of the NBA's "2K" video game series since 2006, the last seven years with CBS Sports colleague Clark Kellogg as analyst. He has called NFL action for NBC Sports and college football for ESPN, as well as college football, college basketball, and championship boxing for the Mutual Broadcasting System.
Harlan has called regular-season action for TNT and TBS since the 1997-98 season. He has been the longest-running NBA play-by-play announcer for TNT in their 39-year history of broadcasting the NBA. He has broadcast more NBA games for TNT than any other announcer. He first called an NBA All-Star game for TNT in 2022, as well as the Western and Eastern Conference Finals.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Kevin Harlan has been a basketball commentator for various networks, including CBS, TNT, TBS, and Westwood One. He has called games for the NBA, NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, and college basketball.
Kevin Harlan has been a basketball commentator for several decades. As of 2024, he had completed 31 seasons broadcasting the NBA, and by 2025, he was approaching his 35th season.
Kevin Harlan is also a well-known American football commentator, having covered the NFL for over 30 seasons. He has also commentated on college football, NFL preseason games, and championship boxing.
