ESPN commentator Doris Burke is a household name among NBA fans. Becoming the first woman to be an analyst for a major North American sporting final is no mean feat. However, that doesn’t mean she is not prone to slip-ups, like the rest of us. And tonight, she made an awkward error that involved the prolific Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

She was a part of the commentary team for tonight’s game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Cleveland Cavaliers. And boy, did she mess up big time! During one play in the 2nd quarter, the ref called a foul and a Thunder player stepped up to take the ensuing free throws. Doris, seeing this, said, “This has been a point of contention for Oklahoma City. Shai Gilegous-Alexander has taken 8 free throws a game…” 

Pretty standard stuff, right? Wrong!

The catch is that the player in question was actually Jalen Williams, not SGA. What makes this worse is she mistook him for SGA while the closeup replay showed Williams being fouled, clear as day. Another commentator slipped up during the Milwaukee Bucks vs San Antonio Spurs game tonight. The announcer kept referring to the Spurs’ head coach as Gregg Popovich.

This happened even though Pop temporarily stepped away from his role and interim coach Mitch Johnson was present in his stead tonight. You’d expect a professional announcer to have done their homework before a game, right?

To err is human, and Doris Burke’s blunder just proved that tonight. However, the internet is undefeated and merciless. And fans can’t get over how such an experienced voice in the sport makes such an error. Given their recent substandard coverage, they seem to be a little miffed with the NBA media in its entirety.

Fans react to Doris Burke mistaking Jalen Williams for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Fans online were not delighted with Burke mistaking Jalen Williams for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. And after the shabby display from the media of late, Burke’s mistake was all it took to unleash a cavalcade of clowning upon her.

One fan stated, “Sometimes she don’t even know what she be saying,” wrote one user on X, highlighting the hilarious mix-up. And it does seem to be the case as Burke continued her game analysis, without stopping to correct herself.

Fans seem to be getting sick of Doris and haven’t shied away from making it known. “Best reg season game this year and we get Doris f—ing Burke,” wrote another NBA fan. Fans have accused her of being partial to players, SGA in particular. With a clip of her praising SGA for going out of bounds circulating online, this is certainly not a good look for her.

Rather hilariously, questions arose about Doris’ vision and mental faculties. “Give that lady some glasses,” wrote an X user, while another person commented, “Dementia”.

Now, mistaking one player for another when you’re watching on a small screen in standard definition is one thing. It’s not the best look, but it’s still understandable. However, doing it while present in the stadium when it’s your job to call the play accurately is inexcusable.

Just goes to show that you can always have an off day, no matter who you are. But do you also think the media personnel covering the NBA have been below par, of late?