When it comes to basketball, there isn’t much he didn’t accomplish after winning two titles with the Knicks, earning seven All-NBA selections, and being named to the NBA 50th and 75th Anniversary Team. His crowning achievement as a player was being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987.
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After 35 years as a color commentator, Frazier has become a rare two-time HOF’er after being announced as Curt Gowdy Award for excellence in electronic media during All-Star weekend. Being a Curt Gowdy winner means Frazier is the first to go into the Hall as a player and broadcaster.
“When I went to support Mike last year, I never envisioned it,” Frazier told The New York Post. “When Mike went in, nobody was saying, ‘Hey, Clyde, you’re next.’ You know what I mean. Nobody said anything about me in the Hall of Fame. I was totally shocked. What a terrific honor.”
“The guy was telling me we think you’re the first Hall of Fame player to ever be a Hall of Fame broadcaster as well,” Frazier said. “But I was in St. Croix. When I got back to New York, and people started coming up to me for the first game congratulating me as a two-time Hall of Famer, the magnitude hit me. And at the Garden, they gave me an introduction (February 25 against Miami) people stood up. Then I started absorbing what I achieved.
“But I’m still absorbing it. It’s still sinking in. When I heard it, I was shocked. I never worked nationally. I haven’t received hardly any awards for being a color analyst. Obviously, it wasn’t one of my goals when I got in the business. It was just a job. It brought me back into the game after I retired in 1980.”
Fraizer started his career in 1987, first on radio, then on TV as broadcast partners with Marv Albert and Mike Breen. Like he did as a player, Frazier became known for his on-air drip and staying objective as a broadcaster, which was due to his policy of not allowing himself to get too close to players. Keeping the relationship professional will enable him to critique players and not play favorites.
Former Air Force coach and longtime league executive Reggie Minton won the John Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award. Sportswriter Mechelle Voepel was named the recipient of the Curt Gowdy Award for print media.
