ope: ope: ope: ope: ope: Chick-isms
- Air-ball: A shot that draws nothing but air.
- (He sent that one back) Air-mail Special!: A strongly-blocked shot, often sent high into the stands.
- Bloooows the layup! : Missed a very easy layup.
- Boo-birds: Fans who boo their own team when they play badly.
- (He did the) bunny hop in the pea patch: He was called for traveling.
- (You could) call it with Braille: An easy call for an official, e.g. a blatant foul.
- (He got) caught with his hand in the cookie jar: A reaching foul.
- (The) Charity Stripe: The free-throw line.
- (He's got 'em) covered like the rug on your floor: Really good one-on-one defense.
- (They) couldn't beat the Sisters of Mercy: The team is getting beat badly.
- (They) couldn't throw a pea into the ocean: The team's shooting is really awful.
- (It'll) count if it goes ...: A player that is fouled in the act of shooting. It go-o-o-oes! (if the shot is successful)
- (That shot) didn't draw iron: A shot which misses the rim, but hits the backboard.
- Dime store score: A 10 to 5 score
- Dribble-drive: A player drives the basket while dribbling.
- Finger roll: A shot where the ball rolls off the shooter's fingers.
- (He) fly-swatted (that one): A shot blocked with force and authority.
- Football score: A score resembling one often seen in a football game (e.g., 21 to 14).
- (He threw up a) frozen rope: A shot with a very flat trajectory.
- (We're) high above the western sideline: Chick's perch at the Fabulous Forum, from which he called his word's eye views of the game.
- Hippity-hops the dribble: A player dribbling the ball does a little hop step.
- I'll bet you an ice-cream: Hearn and Keith Erickson (his one-time color commentator) often bet ice creams on the outcome of a shot or game.
- (He's got) ice-water in his veins: When a player hits a clutch free-throw.
- (It's) garbage time: The (often sloppily-played) remainder of the game (after it’s in the refrigerator).
- Give and Go: A player passes the ball, makes a quick cut, and receives a return pass.
- (In & out,) heart-brrrreak!: A shot that appears to go in, but rattles off the rim and misses. Sometimes it went in so far you could read the Commissioner's name from below.
- He has two chances, slim and none, and slim just left the building: The player has no chance of success with this play.
- If that goes in, I'm walking home: Similar to a prayer, when the opponent shoots a shot that is a prayer, a streak, or some amazing shot. (Usually on the road)
- Leapin' Lena: A shot made while the player is in the air and off balance.
- (There are) lots of referees in the building, only three getting paid: The entire crowd acts as though they are the officials by disagreeing with a call.
- The mustard's off the hot dog: A player attempts an unnecessarily showy, flashy play which ends up in a turnover or is otherwise unsuccessful.
- Nervous time: When the final moments of a game are pressure-packed.
- 94-by-50 hunk of wood: Simply put, a basketball court's dimensions. (Attacking 47 feet: The front court.)
- No harm, no foul(no blood, no ambulance, no stitches): A non-call by an official when varying degrees of contact have occurred. More adjectives means the non-call was more questionable.)
- Not Phi Beta Kappa: Simply put, not a smart play.
- ...Since Hector was a pup A very long time (e.g., the Lakers haven't had the lead since Hector was a pup.)
- He's in the Popcorn Machine (with butter and salt all over him): Meaning that a defensive player got faked into the air by an offensive player's pump fake.
- (He's) on him like a postage stamp: Very tight defense, simply put.
- Slam dunk!: Hearn's most famous phrase; a powerful shot where a player forces the ball through the rim with one or both hands.
- (He) takes him to the third floor and leaves him at the mezzanine: A move where an offensive player pump-fakes a defender and draws a foul from the leaping player.
- Tattoo dribble: A player dribbling the ball while not moving, as though tattooing the floor with the ball, as he waits for the play to develop.
- This game's in the refrigerator: the door is closed, the lights are out, the eggs are cooling, the butter's getting hard, and the Jell-O's jigglin'!: The game's outcome is set; only the final score is in question.
- Throws up a brick: When a player tosses up a particularly errant shot.
- Throws up a prayer (... it's answered!!!): A wild shot that will need a miracle to score (and does).
- Ticky-tack: A foul called when very little contact has been made.
- Triple-double: A player gets 10 or more (i.e. double digits) in three statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals or blocked shots.
- (On his) wallet: A player fell on his rear end.
- Words-eye view: What listeners received while listening to Hearn call the game on the radio.
- (He's) working on his Wrigleys. A player is chewing gum.
- (He's) yo-yo-ing up and down: A player is standing there dribbling the ball up and down as if it was a yo-yo on a string.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_Hearn
wikipedia is great.. Probably the best site on the net IMO bro.
wikipedia is great.. Probably the best site on the net IMO bro.
i was watching the dodger game and had to turn it off ...
their isnt a 1/2 second that goes by when he isnt talking .
and i dont really care that when matt holliday was 5 years old he liked to place match box cars with other kids on his street..
on the other hand , i watched the balt/ tigers game and loved every minute of gary thorne and jim palmer .
i'll take gary thorne over every announcer in history . and that is for any sport.
their isnt a 1/2 second that goes by when he isnt talking .
and i dont really care that when matt holliday was 5 years old he liked to place match box cars with other kids on his street..
on the other hand , i watched the balt/ tigers game and loved every minute of gary thorne and jim palmer .
i'll take gary thorne over every announcer in history . and that is for any sport.
